NeoCon 2022

 

This was my first time attending a trade show in person since 2019. I didn't attend last year's show in October, though I did stop by and pick up a few magazines in the lobby. This year I decided to go. I went rather reluctantly because there were no mask, testing, or vaccine requirements.

At the same time, they issued this disclaimer:

 

Meanwhile, COVID was spreading around Chicago.

 

Because of this, I took it upon myself to wear an extra layer of protection, a face shield over my KF94 mask.

I will continue to wear masks and social distance because I intend to outlive my competitors.

As is the case with most other conferences these days, the organizers chose to do the bare minimum. No masks, no tests, no proof of vaccines, no contact tracing, just vibes. There were still cocktail parties and tables full of snacks. Lots of people walking around with no masks. They came from all over the world and didn't have to get tested before flying, or wear masks on their planes. The tyranny of "normal" struck again. Though I was aware of the high-tech air filtration system the Mart recently installed, I was worried that it might not be enough.

I have to admit that this got in the way of my enjoyment of the event. Even in the week leading up to NeoCon, knowing that this is what I would have to deal with made me wonder if I should even go. I thought back to when I first attended and wanted to make a good impression in case anyone I might meet at NeoCon was hiring, all my worries about being qualified enough and they can't even be bothered to do the right things to keep attendees safe in a pandemic. I think of the language ASID and IIDA like to use about how interior designers are concerned about public safety (one of their arguments for why designers have to have certain credentials in order to use that title), yet public safety was thoroughly disregarded. I think of all the times I've been shut out for supposedly not having enough experience or qualifications. Maybe I don't know Revit and haven't taken the NCIDQ, but at least I have enough sense to wear a decent mask in the middle of an airborne pandemic. 

So when I attended this year, I didn't spend as much time as I normally did, because things are still not normal. I went for just one day, the last day, which in the past was not as crowded. Here are some things that caught my eye this year:

Arc-Com

Sandler Seating

KI

Naughtone

Scandinavian Spaces

Hightower

OFS

Andreu World

Cooper Lighting

Wescover

Burgeree

Sutherland Felt

Mod Power & Lighting Solutions

Koncept Lighting

Crossville

Steelcase

HBF Furniture

Cabot Wrenn

Stylex

Division Twelve

Ethnicraft

Bernhardt

DesignScene by Sandow

New Products

I was really impressed with Vaask's hand sanitizer dispensers. So much more aesthetically pleasing than their utilitarian counterparts, and energy-efficient, too.

 

 

It was also nice to see a local company, Relativity Textiles. They make wallcoverings and fabrics.

Flowers

Here are my favorite floral arrangements from this year:

Final Thoughts 

This is a weird time to think about office furniture. So many people would rather just work from home.

 

 

So much has changed at the Merchandise Mart. In addition to the departure of some big showrooms, the Post Office moved out, too. Momentum is now in the space that Herman Miller left behind.

Of course, being a design hub means that the Mart is ripe for adaptative reuse. This conference room in the Thermador showroom used to be a safe deposit vault when the space was leased by a bank.

Perhaps the sudden upheaval we've experienced since 2020 has many of us feeling nostalgic for the past. I see the Hightower showroom that I featured earlier as an example of that. It has a cozy vibe that reminds me of my aunt's house in the 80s.

Of course, what's old to me is brand new to Gen Z. Another highlight was the Designing a Better Chicago panel. It was so inspiring to learn about the work that Quilen Blackwell, Emily Winter, Tariyawn Knighten, Maya Bird-Murphy, and Kathy Gregg are doing.

Also, I realized that one advantage of wearing a mask was not feeling like I was going to sneeze every time I was in a showroom with a mossy green wall.

 

Some things changed and some stayed the same. It seems like during NeoCon there's always one day with torrential rains, but they were even more extreme this year. My plan to enjoy the outdoor portion of the show and eat outside to avoid pandemic exposure was thwarted by climate change, as a record-setting heat wave cooked Chicago. For my safety I chose to avoid the cocktail parties and showroom snacks because I didn't want to take my mask off. At least I was able to take some bottled water from a booth so I could enjoy it later. 

Before, departing NeoCon for the ordinary world outside the Mart and its gorgeous showrooms felt like leaving Technicolor Oz to go to sepia-toned Kansas. Now, in a world full of COVID, at a time of unbearable heat, I was just happy to get back to the isolation of my air-conditioned studio. I'm glad I took the time to stop by and see the show, but I remain disappointed and dismayed that the show will likely be yet another superspreader event. I long for the day when I no longer have to think about trade shows in this way.

All my photos from this year's show are on Flickr. Also, a here's a thoughtful article by some doctors about how to have conferences that are not superspreader events.