2025 was marked by numerous design fairs and exhibitions, each embodying unique values. Here are our favorite designers of the year. The major events in contemporary design are now essential platforms for discovery, dialogue, and experimentation. Whether it's NYC x Design, Design Miami, the 3 Days of Design in Copenhagen, or the London Design Festival, these events highlight a new generation of designers who are redefining uses, forms, and materials.

Knowledge 

NYC x Design is an event that aims to unite the New York design community and promote emerging talent, from May 15 to 21, 2025. Among these designers, one studio particularly caught our attention: Knownwork. Founded by Danu Kennedy and Jeremy Levitt, this studio presented a chair from its "Perceptions" series during NYC x Design week, upholstered in sky-blue silk velvet and adorned with forest motifs. The chair's radical, perfectly cubic form contrasts sharply with its comfort. Knownwork is a studio that revels in meticulous, geometric work. During NYC x Design, the studio illustrated the allegory of family in its furniture designs. A family is built on stable pillars to ensure optimal comfort in life. The designs allude to the family figure, the mother. For example, The Mother pendant light draws inspiration from this figure through the noble materials used, its elongated shape, and the softness of its lighting. Knowwork unveils unexpected and intellectualized forms.

KOUROS MAGHSOUDI 

Kouros Maghsoudi was spotted at NYC x Design in May 2025. But this promising designer had already made a name for himself in 2024 with his "Hug" bed. Born in Chicago, he draws inspiration from Persian culture and has developed his architectural style independently. He embodies the future of design and the transmutation of cultures. His first collection bears the Persian name "mehmooni," meaning "gathering" or "celebration." His vision is underpinned by a need for absolute freedom. He believes his furniture should be free to adapt to any position users can adopt. Modern and technical, his graphic forms evoke dreamlike and indulgent ideas that spark desire. To ensure a playful aspect, he designs non-radical and asymmetrical shapes inspired by everyday urban life. In addition to being one of our favorites, he is committed to a responsible 3D printing technique using FSC-certified corn and wood. 

Sara Regal 

Sara Regal is a socially conscious designer we discovered during the "3 Days of Design" in Copenhagen, in the showroom of fashion designer Cecile Bahnsen. Her chairs, made from construction waste, have an "ultra-random" form. Based on a principle of deconstruction and reconstruction, the reclaimed waste provides a new way of working. Sara Regal prioritizes discovery, taking an interest in objects she stumbles upon by chance; she finds beauty in what is discarded. The word "waste" is not synonymous with poor quality; the reclaimed materials are innovative, insulating, and naturally sourced.

Richard Henley 

The London Design Festival 2025 featured a young designer named Richard Henley who was part of a group exhibition “You can sit with Us – green carnation” organized by 2LG Studio at Shoreditch Town Hall. 

The designer focuses on creating extraordinary interior lighting, imbued with modernity and an eclectic style. He merges the forms and materials he observed during his recent extended stay in Southeast Asia. He recreates the urban landscape through metallic surfaces and patterns. The craftsmanship is also inspired by this travel and the practices he observed, such as the mulberry papermaking technique he studied with the Bo Sang community. The lamps defy categorization. 

Studio Sam Klemick

The Sam Klemick studio was featured at NYC x Design and Design Miami. The dreamlike style of their collections is enhanced by a union of fluidity and rigidity. Their passion for textiles and beautiful materials like wood makes them a studio that transcends the properties of wood. The studio has explored its forms, eliminating symmetry and perfect circularity. Starting with rigid materials, they offer a new, more harmonious vision with curves and shapes. From this discipline emerges objects with seductive forms, such as the "Big Wooden Bell Chair" seen at Design Miami. The chair is more complex than it appears; attention to detail is essential. The wood's grain and natural imperfections create a striking, random pattern. The way the wood is cut and shaped conveys an impression of movement, of the passage of wind and time. The sculpted folds are the result of a self-taught shaping technique. 

Through these designers and studios identified on the international design scene, a shared vision emerges: that of design which transcends mere function to tell stories. Whether it's the family allegory of Knowwork, the freedom of use and cultural transmutation championed by Kouros Maghsoudi, the valorization of waste by Sara Regal, the artisanal eclecticism of Richard Henley, or the fairytale narratives of the Sam Klemick studio, each offers a unique interpretation of the contemporary world. These approaches reflect a design in flux, where the object becomes manifest, more conscious, and resolutely focused on humanity, beginning with its own designer.