Faye Toogood celebrates the creative flow that stems out from the artistic exchange of collectivism.  

In occasion of the 2017 London Design Festival, Toogood has launched The Trade Show, a peculiar exhibition organized by the British designer that involves with 50 other creative minds ranging from different artistic disciplines, from photography to furniture design. The concept behind The Trade Show is based on the idea of mutual sharing and focuses on the countless benefits that arise from it. With give in order to have back as a bottom line, the project proves that the collaborative process leads to the enrichment of the self while enriching the others.

For this project, the designer, renowned for her experimental approach, has donated to each participant one of her signature Spade chairs, designed specifically for the occasion in a special sandcast-aluminium limited edition. In exchange she has got back 50 pieces representative of each designer’s firm, and put together the exhibition. With the aim to explore deeper the relation between the donor and the donee, The Trade Show showcases also a series of documents that capture the interactions of the various creative minds with their own Spade chairs. The Trade Show‘s location, The Garage in North Terrace, West London, has historical value as it is the same venue in which Toogood launched its very first furniture collection in 2010. This choice highlights the brand’s attachment to an ideal of cultural continuity in social attitudes and pays homage to the centuries-old tradition of artists supporting each other through mutually benefcial barters.

The Trade Show celebrates diversity, and it embodies a judgement-free space where the only focus is set on the polymorphic art world, an auto-curated Wunderkammer that showcases pieces from some of the most exciting talents in contemporary British art and design.