By Bri Brands

In the city that never sleeps, a select group of College of Liberal Arts and Sciences 3D Design graduate and undergraduate students kicked off their summer by spending three days honing professional and developmental skills.

The students attended Wanted, a design showcase feature at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF). ICFF Wanted spotlights the best of North American design, international emerging talent, and international school and student work, and takes place annually in New York City every May. 

Monica Correia and Vako Darjania, both faculty members of 3D Design in the School of Art, Art History, and Design, helped lead the trip. 

“Wanted allows young designers or people trying to break into the market a way to share with the prestigious community,” Correia said. 

Over the course of the 2024-25 academic year, Correia and Darjania worked with students in the Furniture Design I and II and Product Design courses to design stools and chairs. Each semester, a select group of high performing students from these courses is invited to attend ICFF Wanted. 

“The students know that the pieces will most likely be seen by somebody,” Correia said. “Knowing that your piece is going to be exhibited gives you another goal to work for.”  

At ICFF Wanted, students are able to share their work and network with professionals in the design industry, as well as hear from keynote speakers. Siyun Xue, a graduate student in the 3D Design program, was able to take his experience another step further. 

Xue’s work was selected for the Launch Pad, a sub-section of Wanted and an outstanding international platform for emerging designers that introduces new concepts and showcases prototypes of furniture, home accessories, and lighting.  

After attending ICFF Wanted in 2024, Xue knew he wanted to showcase his work at the Launch Pad and spent the better part of a year developing a flat pack chair made of colored core birch plywood. Unlike a regular chair, however, Xue’s chair looks like a building, with small windows and a pattern on the surface. 

Xue said the experience helped him learn more about design as he was able to get experience from a different group of professionals in the industry. 

“As a design student, you can get feedback from your professors and peers and develop your work, but that is still a small group of people to receive feedback from,” he said. “ICFF is important because it allows students to get some experience in the professional world and broaden their knowledge about design.”  

Xue said he and the other University of Iowa students in attendance most enjoyed talking with new people in the Wanted section. 

“Our class was able to make a lot of good friends and build some meaningful connections with each other,” he said. “This is helpful, because it helps foster a very active design community within North America.”  

Correia enjoyed watching students grow both personally and professionally during the trip. 

“What matters the most to me is what they’re making, their experience making it, and how they’re growing,” she said.