BRUSSELS.- The 3rd edition of COLLECTIBLE closed on Sunday 8 March, with participants across all sections reporting healthy sales, brand new commissions, strong networking opportunities and invaluable encounters. Running from 5-8 March at the Vanderborght building in Brussels, the fair attracted 115 international exhibitors and over 18,000 visitors across the week.

COLLECTIBLE is the only fair worldwide to focus on 21st century collectible design, with galleries, designers, design studios and institutions joining forces to celebrate today’s best talents. As dealer Todd Merrill from New York puts it ‘the fair provides 21st century collectible design a much-needed fresh point of view where gallerists and artists cohabit harmoniously’, an opinion shared by Portuguese designer Mircea Anghel, confirming that the fair offers ‘a very strong platform for independent makers and designers to present their work to a wider public, building bridges between dealers and designers around the globe and creating concrete opportunities’.

Noted highlights from this year included the brand-new section BESPOKE which showcased the best of recent creations and high-end commissions by individual designers and design studios; the enlarged CURATED Section, a vibrant platform designed by Döppel Studio which helped facilitate encounters for young designers; the scenography for the entrance of the fair created by Atelier Tomas Dirrix; and the satellite programme including talks, food design and kids workshops offering the wider public an enhanced experience.

Participants expressed their excitement at the high-profile visitors at the fair, from international collectors and representatives of major institutions to influential design, architecture and art professionals and aficionados. Galerie Philia from Geneva and New York disclosed strong sales, adding that ‘their collection attracted many collectors and interior designers who loved the curation of their display and the sculptural aspect of the design pieces.’ Portuguese ceramicist Maria Ana Vasca Costa was ‘delighted by the enthusiasm for her creations and the possibilities for some new commissions with different institutions from South-Africa to New-York’. Paris-based duo David Giroire and Jérôme Bazzocchi from Théorème Éditions noted that ‘the fair was a beautiful and promising experience, with new opportunities for development’. Luis Sendino, founder of SIDE Gallery in Barcelona who exhibited for the first time enjoyed ‘the fair’s young energy’ and said ‘it was an opportunity for the gallery to show a selection of their youngest contemporary designers, to do something fresh and meet upcoming talents also on show at COLLECTIBLE.

Sharing their delight with this year’s edition, additional exhibitors said:

‘COLLECTIBLE gets better and better every year. We are certainly coming back; the fair’s vision is perfectly aligned with ours and enables us to do what we really want.’ Benoit Wolfrom, Functional Art Gallery (Germany)

‘This is the first time we participate at COLLECTIBLE and we are impressed. All the galleries and artists are very well selected, the exhibition is exquisitely curated. We are happy to experience this, meet new galleries and find new beautiful objects. We hope to cooperate with the fair in the future.' fābula gallery (Russia)

‘This first participation at COLLECTIBLE with FORMAT, our platform for emerging designers and artists, feels like coming home. The superb location, vibrant atmosphere, inspiring conversations, warm visitors and smooth organisation is like a puzzle that fits together seamlessly.' Heleen Van Loon, Z33 (Belgium)

‘We met an eclectic, curious and demanding audience, in search of singular and high-quality pieces.’ David Giroire and Jérôme Bazzocchi, Théorème Éditions (France)

‘COLLECTIBLE is like the ‘haute couture’ in product design - a highly concentrated unique collectible design fair, absolutely new and original. The fair was extremely well curated, I can only congratulate and salute Clélie, Liv and the whole team for a great 3rd edition. That was definitely the best contemporary design exhibition that I visited for the last years.’ Victoria Yakusha, Founder of FAINA Design (Ukraine)

‘COLLECTIBLE has provided great human encounters, prospects for collaboration and the promise of being able to continue exploring linen." Pauline Esparon (France)

Co-founders Liv Vaisberg and Clélie Debehault commented: ‘we are so grateful and touched by the overall response to the third edition of the fair. The enthusiasm expressed by both exhibitors and visitors shows that contemporary collectible design has finally met the status it deserves. It is really rewarding to witness the strong community that COLLECTIBLE has fostered around this segment of design in just three editions and we look forward to the next edition with much anticipation.’