Installation view of “Camilla Moberg: Over the Rainbow” at Galerie Maria Wettergren, Paris.
Photo: Gregory Copitet
10 Collectible Design Shows to See in April
From Jenga-like earthenware assemblages by a Memphis master to totemic glass sculptures radiating patterns of endangered beetles and dragonflies
April typically heralds the arrival of spring, meaning warmer temperatures, blooming flowers, and longer days. As we start to emerge from our winter hibernation and embrace the season’s sun-drenched optimism, designers are finding increasingly clever ways to imbue their creations with the essence of the season. We marvel at Japanese sculptor Masaomi Raku’s somber stone carvings and feel the energizing vibrations of fluid hyacinth glass sculptures by Danish artist Karin Mørch. For seasonal grouches not yet ready to shed their cocoon, we suggest a faithful recreation of Karl Lagerfeld’s Monte Carlo apartment furnished with Memphis classics.
“Basalt 024-613” by Byung Hoon Choi. Photo: Courtesy of Friedman Benda and Byung Hoon Choi
“Cabinet 024-621” by Byung Hoon Choi. Photo: Courtesy of Friedman Benda and Byung Hoon Choi
1. “Byung Hoon Choi: Voice of Silence” at Friedman Benda | New York
The Korean artist and master craftsman deepens his explorations into stillness and silence with a series of nature-inspired wood and basalt furniture that pay homage to his heritage. Rough-hewn basalt benches embody a dialogue between the stone’s ancient surfaces formed millions of years ago and the contemporary polish brought by his hand; wooden cabinets perched on natural stone bases offer a contemplative vision of nature’s quiet grace. “The materials I use, whether it’s the cool hardness of basalt or the warmth of wood, each carries its own history and energy,” Choi says. “My process is about finding harmony in their contrasts and celebrating the quiet beauty that emerges from these natural forms.”
Installation view of “Camilla Moberg: Over the Rainbow” at Galerie Maria Wettergren, Paris. Photo: Gregory Copitet
2. “Camilla Moberg: Over the Rainbow” at Galerie Maria Wettergren | Paris
Rainbows are often perceived as symbols of hope—and the Finnish artist embeds optimism into each of her luminous glass sculptures, which are blown by master artisans in Nuutajärvi, the oldest glass village in Finland. Here, she sheds light on biodiversity with detailed glass components evoking patterns and colors found primarily on beetles, dragonflies, and owls. By transposing and enlarging these patterns into abstract glass formations in totemic forms, Moberg reveals their otherworldly beauty and draws attention to engaged animal populations.
Installation view of “Yoyo Balagué & Jaume Roig: Tierra y Mar” at Les Ateliers Courbet, New York. Photo: Courtesy of Les Ateliers Courbet
3. “Yoyo Balagué & Jaume Roig: Tierra y Mar” at Les Ateliers Courbet | New York
Spanish artists Yoyo Balagué and Jaume Roig both experiment with time-honored techniques informed by the ceramic traditions of their locales, sharing a deep-rooted reverence for organic material and landscapes. The former’s pit-fired Sphere series is imbued with natural forces of coastal Catalonia: windswept textures and the essence of geological formations. Roig’s sculptural vessels, particularly his new Raku Long Neck series, captures the essence of Ses Salines’ weathered shoreline and sun-bleached palette thanks to the Japanese raku firing process, where smoke and ash imprint unpredictable textures onto each piece.
Installation view of “Profili e Gesti” at Rhinoceros Gallery, Rome. Photo: Simon d’Exea
Installation view of “Profili e Gesti” at Rhinoceros Gallery, Rome.
4. “Profili e Gesti” at Rhinoceros Gallery | Rome
The Roman gallery led by Alessia Caruso Fendi continues its collaboration with Galerie Kreo with a stellar group show presenting offbeat works by designers whose practices are marked by material experimentation and unabashed artistic whimsy. Jaime Hayon debuts ceramic vases and chandeliers with hand-painted faces, including a series of white porcelain vessels decorated with Bisazza tiles. Jean-Baptiste Fastrez’s corduroy velvet mirrors contrast the softness of fabric with the precision of glass. Echoing its materiality is a royal blue geometric bench by Marco Campardo that employs a high-gloss resin often used for boat hulls. Rhythmic drawings by Pierre Charpin echo in his enameled lava stone coffee tables. Chris Kabel crafted a circular bench from a single tree trunk; its components are held together solely by a metal ring.
Installation view of “Francesco Vezzoli Presents: Karl Goes to Memphis” at Almine Rech, Monaco. Photo: Nicolas Brasseur, courtesy of the artist, Memphis, and Almine Rech
5. “Francesco Vezzoli Presents: Karl Goes to Memphis” at Almine Rech | Monaco
In the early 1980s, Karl Lagerfeld moved to Gio Ponti’s historic Roccabella building in Monte Carlo and decided to furnish it entirely with Memphis pieces. Francesco Vezzoli’s third solo exhibition at Almine Rech seeks to faithfully recreate the ambience of the late couturier’s apartment within the gallery’s walls in Monaco. Among the masterpieces on display are the iconic Carlton bookshelf by Ettore Sottsass, a to-scale “domestic boxing ring” by Masanori Umeda that also functions as furniture, and chairs and table lamps by Michele De Lucchi. To celebrate the occasion, Vezzolli also created eight portraits of a younger, more spontaneous Lagerfeld and displayed them in opulent baroque frames.
Installation view of “Spiritual Landscapes” at Cristina Grajales Gallery, New York. Photo: Courtesy of Cristina Grajales Gallery
6. “Spiritual Landscapes” at Cristina Grajales Gallery | New York
Adorned with intricate patinas capturing history that unfolds like an aged manuscript, the deeply layered furniture and sculpture made by father-son duo Philip and Kelvin LaVerne serve as portals to ancient civilizations. Their rare pieces are a fitting jumping-off point for a group show featuring works that trace time, memory, and elemental forces across manifold surfaces, much like landscapes shaped by wind, water, and human touch. They’re joined by Jaime Franco’s abstract paintings, which layer geometric structures with intuitive marks to depict shifting energies. Hugo Rodríguez, meanwhile, draws inspiration from the Brazilian jungle’s vibrant ecosystems to create bronze sculptures that speak to our connection with the land.
Installation view of “Samuel Ross: Heave” at SCAD Museum of Art, Savannah. Photo: Courtesy of SCAD
7. “Samuel Ross: Heave” at SCAD Museum of Art | Savannah
Several of the prolific British-Caribbean designer’s distinct but connected bodies of work coalesce in the first exhibition spanning his full artistic practice. Featuring two of his rarely shown abstract paintings and four hand-painted utility jackets hearkening to his streetwear origins, the setup is anchored by sculptural seating in Nero Africa granite and glass fiber reinforced concrete that exemplifies his curiosity for pushing materials to their limits. “A distinct signature of expression can be found within my works,” Ross says. “Abstraction through reconstituted materials, industrial alchemies through material inquires and experimentation, and industrial commentary through color systems and forms.”
Installation view of “Et Tu, Ettore” at Galerie56, New York. Photo: Antoine Bootz
“Odalisca” (1967–1986) by Ettore Sottsass. Photo: Image courtesy of Friedman Benda
8. “Et Tu, Ettore” at Galerie56 | New York
As one of the most visible torchbearers of the Memphis Milano movement, Ettore Sottsas endures as one of design history’s most significant counterforces to by-the-books modernism. Architect and Galerie56 founder Lee F. Mindel curated an array of the late design luminary’s obscure work and personal holdings across eras, acting as a survey of his creative output. The show spans rarely seen examples of his early ceramic prototypes made in the 1960s, two of his iconic totems, and vessels from his glazed earthenware Geology series made in the early 2000s. The latter’s stacked geometric build echoes the gallery’s architecture at the base of 56 Leonard Street, otherwise known as the “Jenga Tower” by Herzog & de Meuron.
Alabaster bowls by Masaomi Raku. Photo: Courtesy of Pierre Marie Giraud
“Sekki Stone Bowl VII’ (2022) by Masaomi Raku. Photo: Courtesy of Pierre Marie Giraud
9. “Masaomi Raku” at Pierre Marie Giraud | Brussels
The Japanese sculptor’s somber stone carvings often highlight the relationship between nature and form while seeking to maintain a harmonious relationship between his art and favored material. This selection of recent works demonstrate his ongoing interest in how light, texture, and form can interact with stone to express concepts of permanence and change while allowing the material’s natural features to remain an integral part of the finished piece.
“Big Line Rose” (2025) by Karin Mørch. Photo: Courtesy of Vessel Gallery
10. “Karin Mørch: Coherence” at Vessel Gallery | London
“Vibrations are all around us,” explains the Danish glass artist Karin Mørch, who channels unseen energies into wondrous sculptures in which solid, heavy glass, cast in a range of single pure colors, is transformed into a fluid gesture. Some sculptures embody the fluid brushstrokes of Chinese calligraphy; others evoke the vibrating lines of sound wave recordings. One clear highlight is her Big Line series of rose, hyacinth, and fuchsia sculptures that embody the distorted shapes achieved when glass is stretched through elaborately winding molds.
Cover: Installation view of “Camilla Moberg: Over the Rainbow” at Galerie Maria Wettergren, Paris.
Photo: Gregory Copitet
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