Upon entering the exhibition space of Pasar Desain 2013 in the Grand Indonesia mall, something immediately pops into view: chairs.

The five-day furniture design market '€” held by the Indonesian Society of Interior Designers (HDII) in cooperation with the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry and Indonesian Furniture Designers Association (HDMI) '€” features lots of chairs, made of teak, iron, rattan, pine and plastic, in a variety of designs.

Curated by Jay Subiakto, Achadiat Joedawinata and Chandra Johan, there are about 200 pieces of furniture from about 50 designers in the market.

The curators have tagged more than 50 pieces with the label '€œGood Design'€ and seven pieces with '€œGold Design'€.

The Good Design distinction was given to pieces that are affordable (about Rp 1 million or US$91), smart, creative, original, innovative, of good quality and environmentally friendly.

The Pasar Desain committee said that it wanted to challenge Indonesian designers to create affordable well-designed products to compete with imported furniture and furnishings.

Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu, who made a speech on the second day of exhibition on Thursday, said the government supported the event and hoped that Indonesia'€™s middle-class homes would be filled with products designed and made in Indonesia.

'€œIt is estimated that our middle-class population has reached 30 to 40 million and will grow to about 100 million in 2030. I want their homes to be filled with products designed and made in Indonesia,'€ Mari said.

Best designs: Seven creations at Pasar Desain are featured as '€œthe best'€ as they received more than one '€œGood Design'€ tag from the curators.
Ayu Sawitri Joddy of HDII said that it was the first time HDII had held Pasar Desain, though HDII had organized a different furniture exhibition, Desain.ID, two and four years ago. '€œDesain.ID is more about showcasing and networking but in Pasar Desain we want the vendors to sell as well,'€ she said.

The market this year is held on the fifth floor of the mall, where foot traffic is relatively low. Nico Pranoto, one of the designers said, however, that the number of visitors and the sales he had made so far were good.

Nico sells pillows out of his stand, where he meets customers and explains the features of his products.
He was not the only designer at the exhibition, which gave ample opportunity for visitors to meet the brains behind the pieces.

Pasar Desain runs until Sunday. On Saturday it will host short presentations by designers whose works have gone international, like Didiet Maulana and Francis Surjaseputra.