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Differniture’s Aakriti Kumar has created beautiful seating and lighting out of scrap wood, Wholesalers embroidery machines with the idea of creating something aesthetically pleasing, functional and gentle on the environment.The Human TouchHandmade seems to be quite the buzzword at ID this year, with several designers not only exhibiting handmade and hand-embroidered pieces but also incorporating into their exhibit the craftspeople whose hands actually do the making. Furnishing FacetsBesides all the breathtaking, intricate as well as not-so-intricate, innovative ‘modern-functional’ and stand-out objective pieces, this year’s ID is also rich in several furnishing fabrics by Zynna, Versace, The Pure Concept, Sarita Handa, Seasons, Cottons & Satins by Mala, etc. Here are a few highlights not to be missed if you plan to pay the three-day affair a visit. Kayu has brought to India stone, wood and natural textures from Bali with its minimalistic tables, consoles, chairs and decorative items. Along similar lines, In Living has worked with timber that comes only from eco-friendly sources and has reused, recycled and re-invented products by combining natural hard and soft materials.

This year, viewers and design aspirants can witness interesting presentations, panel discussions, interactive sessions, debates and dialogues at a specially selected area inside the NSIC grounds where design luminaries and creative pundits like Mario Bellini, Ayaz Basrai, Dominique Jean-Lavabre, Bijoy Jain, Iram Sultan etc. While as a brand Sarita Handa stuck to its design sensibilities, with designs made out of uncompromised craftsmanship, Cottons and Satins by Mala showcased its celebrated designer Adil Ahmad’s surreal The Palace Collection that reflected his inclination towards Indian royalty through palettes, patterns, textures and fabrics. Welspun has a lady busily engaged in Kantha weaving right outside its exhibition space, on a wooden loom! Functional Form This year, ID plays host to a rather harmonious marriage of form and function. Fall_Seven Concept’s having turned otherwise mundane everyday objects such as a bucket and clothing iron into usable artistic lighting is also worth a look, along with Sixinch’s brightly coloured textured panels that are weather proof and UV stable.

You can catch Tom Dixon, a multi-award winning self-taught designer who first gained recognition in the mid 80’s with a collection of salvaged welded furniture, conducting a ‘Masterclass in Design’; Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Toyo Ito, who is renowned for creating conceptual structures the world over, will be speaking on ‘Architecture: Today, for tomorrow’ on Day 2 of ID. An intelligently designed compact home office and a multi-functional dining cabinet from Knock On Wood are two among several design pieces at the Exhibition Pavilion that are easy on the eye and fairly high up on the ultility scale. The inspiration for this design comes from ancient Chinese folklore where the Emperors of Yore bred albino peacocks in large aviaries as a symbol of their power and pursuit of aesthetics.