Ikea doesn't usually show at furniture fairs, but this year the Swedish home furnishings company made an exception at ICFF, to unveil a sprawling new line of ambitious designs. The so-called PS line is Ikea's flagship for co-branding with high-profile designers such as Hella Jongerius; it's also the launch pad for its most experimental pieces. When it arrives in stores this August, it'll be a truly huge offering, comprising 71 designs. Here's Marty Martson, Ikea's PR director, describing the idea behind a new chair designed by FRONT--a wildly talented group that usually designs high-end, high-concept one-offs. The reading chair is an actual chair with cushions that turn, like the pages in a book:

Here's more works from the line:

A big, spiky pendant lamp, 32" in diameter, is the spitting image of a dandelion--in fact the shadows it throws were meant to look like dandelion petals scattered in the wind:

This room divider was meant to look like a stand of trees at the edge of a forest:

This enormous bowl--20 inches wide--resembles a huge hat misplaced by some giant:

Inspired by a park bench, this chair actually uses cutting-edge fabrics and fabrication. The top is soft and cushy, though it looks like painted wood:

This bowl was the product of several months work, with the designer spending time in India and Vietnam to learn local bamboo weaving techniques. But it's a new invention entirely, comprised bamboo sheets glued together. The bowl keeps its shape, but it's slightly floppy as well--somewhere between wood and fabric:

This rug draws from those designed by North African nomads, who weave rugs to different lengths each season, to mark how plentiful a passing harvest has been:

A 15-inch-tall pepper mill that was meant to look like a king's scepter:

This candle holder, at 19 inches in diameter, is more of a bin. It's meant to act like a fire grate would--the designer intended it to be filled with candles to make an "indoor campfire":

A chandelier made from woven palm leaves, with a shape inspired by a dried sea urchin:

This dining table was inspired by a millstone, complete with a hole in the center:

A basket inspired by the indigenous designs of the Sami people--native Scandinavian nomads, whose livelihoods depend on reindeer:

An apparently whimsical cabinet that hides clever packing principles--each drawer nests into the next, allowing the piece to pack into an incredibly small box for shipping:

A stool designed to evoke a topographical map:

This vase features a closed top and flared openings, so that flowers can sprout from it like a real trunk:

This shelving unit, whose wooden planks are cut to different lengths, was inspired by the haphazard look of scaffolding on a construction site:

This table lamp by FRONT--which is quite large, standing 28" tall--is made of bits of turned wood, joined by a core of wire, which produces "bendable wood" that's meant to lean over your shoulder, like a pet:

Read more Fast Company stories about ICFF 2009 here.