D e s i g n - e n g i n e . c o m 2 0 0 3 : Surface Magazine's Milan T.A.G. Party Pictures

Surface Magazine's Milan T.A.G. Party Pictures

"I heard the cops broke up the party."

Each year launched in 2001, T.A.G. [The American Group] offers 13 promising new design firms a spring-board showcase at the international furniture fairs. Presented by Surface magazine, Bombay Sapphire, Miss Sixty/Energie, and Bisazza mosaics, the Project proudly spotlights promising new talent emerging within the United States. Surface Magazine.

Many of the designers who have participated in T.A.G. Have gone on to flourish from the manufacturing deals and special projects made available to them through this opportunity. Some of them include: Yves Behar/fuseproject, Elizabeth Paige Smith, Christopher Streng, Daniel Streng, Rick Lee Design, Giovanni Pellone/BENZA, and Giovanni Pagnotta.

This year the 13 desingers are: Cory Grosser, Positive Industrial Design cory@positiveindustrialdesign.com, Dario Antonioni, Orange 22 > dario@orange22.com , David Tsai > DJTsai@aol.com, Gabriele Haag & Tobias Reischle > tobiasreischle@freenet.de, Jeff Miller > jeff@jeffmillerdesign.com, Jessica Corr > jcorr@collaborativeny.com > www.collaborativeny.com, Josh Owen, Owenlogik Design > info@owenlogik.com, Josh Schoenfeld, AUX > www.aux-life.com, Mark Naden, TODA > mcnaden@toda.net, Mirzat Koc, FLOV > mk@mirzatkoc.com, Reza Feiz, Phase > faze2faze@aol.com, Seth Keaveny > sk@keavenyllc.com, Viktor Jondal > viktor@jondal.net

T.A.G. Launches in Milan in April during the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, then travels to New York one month later for the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. Curated by Surface editors and editorial director Riley Johndonnell, T.A.G. Milan is the premier showcase for these designs--all of which are exclusive to Surface.

The T.A.G. curators reviewed hundreds of submissions to assemble this year's roster of exceptional talent. Each piece was held to stringent criteria and selected based on the incorporation of innovative materials, experimental forms and advanced manufacturing technologies.

To highlight the showcase this year, Surface invited Milanese designer Fabio Novembre to design an impactful exhibition layout. Novembre created a dynamic 82ft (25m) runway that crests into a towering 13ft (4m) tall heart-shape centerpiece. The dramatic focal point, appropriately entitled A Big Heart, is completely covered in colorful Bisazza mosaics.

Adjacent to the showcase, Surface presents the first ever Bombay Sapphire Martini Glass Retrospective. The Retrospective features 20 images from the signature design collection, as well as the prestigious designers who have contributed over the years.

Miss Sixty/Energie's creative director Wichy Hassan adds to the inspirational energy of the T.A.G. showcase with his progressive op-art lounge. Situated off of the Retrospective, the Miss Sixty/Energie environment is an electric landscape of geometric and photographic projections, complete with tables and seating for visitors.

Curators Surface editors and Editorial Director Riley Johndonnell

Exhibit Designer Fabio Novembre in association with Mango Productions