In its seventh year, the Guerrilla Furniture and Art Truck Show has become one of the most notable independent design events in the industry and an early summer staple for design junkies across the city. It was conceived and curated by founder Morlen Sinoway and staff, whose eponymous custom furniture and home accessory atelier still sits center court amid the festivities at the corner of Fulton Market and Aberdeen. What started as a meager six-truck display of talent has grown into a juried affair of more than 40 U-Hauls, which morph into showrooms for a night in hopes of gaining commercial notice; in fact, Crate & Barrel and other design shops have scouted for talent at the show. Meet three Chicago-based firms that caused a stir at this year’s show—they are sure to be national names in no time.

 

A Movable Feast
Nathan McBride is both a throwback to the past and a futurist. This general contractor is also a master carpenter, often called upon for his custom woodwork designs, and his newest endeavor is a smorgasbord of movable offerings. McBride works with locally harvested walnut and other hardwoods from which he creates modular shelving units and fixtures that can be taken along from home to home or room to room, just like his furnishings (we love the Second Breakfast chair, $750). He is equally noted for his old-school fiery orange work truck and his typewritten (yes, on a typewriter!) invoices and estimates, which are often hand-delivered. His down-home spirit indicates he works the old-fashioned way, while his new designs offer a nod to what’s next. mcbridehousewrights.com