By Emily Siwek, Trend Futurist & Director of Architectural Design
Our team was in Chicago recently for the annual commercial tradeshow, NeoCon, to see what’s new in commercial furnishings and beyond. This year our main takeaway was that most of the energy and excitement is coming from the acoustics industry.
Turf Design
One of our first stops was the Turf Design showroom which had a nightclub vibe complete with a DJ and a line to get in. It was named the winner of the IIDA’s 2026 Showroom and Booth Design Competition held at NeoCon. Along with interesting bold designs, Turf Design expanded their science-based Hues palette with ten new colors born from neuroaesthetic research.
Slalom Acoustic
In a new permanent showroom, Slalom introduced architecturally interesting acoustic products like the geometric Spykon collection and colorways produced as part of their collaboration with Teklan.
Momentum x Autex
Fabric manufacturer Momentum Textiles has partnered with Autex to expand their presence in the acoustical market with a variety of wall and ceiling products. The patterns and colorways support the textiles while providing additional sound absorption. We thought the Groove Duet pattern especially paired well with their new textile collection by Hip-Hop Architect Michael Ford.
This is just a small sampling of the energy and excitement happening in the acoustic space.
Stay tuned for more of our finds and follow along for more dispatches from our travels and tradeshows! Click here to connect with us and follow our Instagram and LinkedIn.