A Tale of Mr Somebody & Mr Nobody, Art Basel's Curious Pop-Up

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We lowered our shades towards Mr Somebody & Mr Nobody last week, and the two-week pop up has officially opened its doors in the Design District for Art Basel. Only a full blown gallery could do the merchandise and clever details inside justice, which we've provided after the jump, however we'll tell you a little story about it first.

The store is a narrative in a sense, of a quirky businessman who hails from Africa, and whether he is fictional or not depends entirely on who's listening. The founders of the brand (or his trusty assistants) are Sharon Lombard and Heidi Chisholm, both from South Africa and both who have a love for all things whimsical. Sharon resides in Miami, while Heidi is a graphic designer from New York. The two met through Sharon's daughter, and have been inseparable business partners since they founded Mr. Somebody and Mr. Nobody about three years ago. The store is full of jokes and irony, like $1,0000,0000 rubber sandals (because they are in the luxury district, after all), and the gift of a free coke if you've bought yourself a plane.

It's a whimsical outpost to say the least, with fun interactive installations like a photo station where you'll have a one-on-one iPhone session with professional photographer Miles Ladin, who photographs for Women's Wear Daily, and a special tea area where you'll get to try out authentic South African red tea for free, but only when the tea time sign is up. Other international designers and makers share the space too, like Walter Van Beirendonck, a famed Belgian fashion designer known for infusing chaos into beautiful threads and a South African designer named Superella, who's known for making clothing out of interesting shapes.

They're having an opening party on the 4th, complete with a sausage cart, a tequila bar, a lime tree for said tequila bar where you can choose your lime, and, of course, plenty of tea. Once the pop-up closes on December 15 (because sadly, it will), you can continue to find their one-of-a-kind merchandise at the Miami Art Museum, the Wolfsonian in South Beach and in other museums across the country.

· Mr Somebody & Mr Nobody [Official Site]
· Who is Mr Somebody & Mr Nobody, and what's in his shop? [Racked Miami]
· Art Basel Coverage [Racked Miami]