VISO Celebrates the opening of HOST on Howard with AvroKO

NEW YORK CITY, November 2024

The four Founding Partners of the global, award-winning design firm, AvroKO - Kristina O’Neal, William Harris, Greg Bradshaw and Adam Farmerie - announced the opening of HOST on Howard, a functional and high-concept love letter to hospitality. The gallery and gathering space will showcase “tools for gathering” including hospitality grade furniture and lighting, service trolleys, and other elevated art and design objects. VISO design-engineered and fabricated all lights and bar elements in the space, located on Howard Street, SoHO New York City.
“HOST is our celebration of hospitality as a ritual for both gathering and belonging,” says Kristina
O’Neal, Founding Partner and Principal of AvroKO. “As part of our daily business we are constantly
creating objects that bring people together and enhance our shared experiences - warm lighting
that makes everyone at the table softly glow, height adjustable tables that work for cocktail or
dining height depending on the time of day, or moveable screens that can be molded to illuminate a
corner or better create privacy.” Partner William Harris adds “For the last 20 plus years, our job has
been to be inventive in the creation of these tools for gathering and find new ways to make peop
feel comfortable, delighted, and considered through the lighting, furniture, serving tools, and spaces
we design.”
“Hospitality, at its core, is about creating meaningful connections that remind us we’re all part of
something bigger. Through our design process, we're not just shaping hospitable objects; we hope
we’re creating experiences that foster a more connected and hospitable world,” adds O’Neal.
THE PRODUCTS
Inventive, story-driven items created for hospitality environments and hospitality-for-the-home
applications
With a focus on craftsmanship and the timeless, core tenets of hospitality, HOST showcases the
best custom designs from AvroKO, as well as a mix of thoughtfully-curated pieces from makers and
designers admired by the AvroKO Partners. The products range from approachable, easy-to-specify
items to singular art objects. All pieces are available to order in the HOST on Howard brick and
mortar gallery or via the website:
● High-Design Service Trolleys - trolleys and carts for tableside or independent service
including: ice cream, dessert, bar, and dim sum offerin
● Lighting – soft glow chandeliers, pendants, sconces, and table lamps
● Furniture – hospitality-centric seating and height adjustable tables
● Art Objects – created by the four Founding Partners and other artisans
THE FIRST EXHIBITION: THE PARADISA
The first story of belonging: the walled garden or the Edenic Paradi
HOST on Howard creates new collections on an ongoing, annual basis with exhibition shows
opening in the Fall of each year, in addition to new offerings quarterly. Fall 2024’s debut showca
presents the story of “The Paradisa” channeling the utopian allegory of Eden’s walled garden;
illustrating the foundations of hospitality as an abundant gift. The Paradisa is a place where
everything belongs and is welcomed; standing in total, and working harmoniously together.
Each exhibition will be complemented by a capsule collection of furniture, art, lighting, unique
service tools and objects.