Hard to believe it’s been a whole year since Arktura debuted at NeoCon 2025, but this year, Arktura not only showed up, we showed out. From June 8–10 at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, we debuted a revamped showroom, expanded our presence across the building with new collaborative spaces, and gave the industry its first look at three architectural systems that hadn’t been seen anywhere else. If last year’s NeoCon was our reintroduction to the industry, this year was our declaration of what comes next.
Our space at the Mart was reimagined from the ground up, less a product display, more a living design lookbook. Every surface, ceiling, and wall was doing something intentional, creating a full-scale, fully realized environment built for immersion and inspiration. This wasn’t a preview of what’s possible; it was the real thing.
Last year, we arrived at NeoCon with a showstopping space that demonstrated our capabilities in acoustic felt, perforated metal, lighting, and architectural integration, and walked away with three Best of NeoCon awards. This year, we raised the bar. Attendees experienced new finishes, new systems, and new ideas.
This year, our presence extended well beyond our dedicated showroom. We partnered with Armstrong on a collaborative design space on the ground floor of the Mart, a joint environment that brought together two industry leaders to show what’s possible when great systems work in concert. It was a space designed for conversation, inspiration, and for seeing complementary solutions side by side in action.
We were also featured within Sandow’s DesignScene floor, where attendees discovered Arktura’s work in a curated, artistic installation, alongside some of the most forward-thinking voices in design today.
NeoCon 2026 marked the public debut of three new architectural systems — all unveiled before their broader market launch, later this fall. Here’s what we introduced:
Ruelo™ — Ripple-Finish Stainless Steel Panels
Ruelo™ is a premium architectural ceiling and wall system that brings the serene, dynamic movement of light across water into the built environment. Its highly reflective, water ripple-finish stainless steel panels created a biophilic aesthetic that felt simultaneously calm and alive, shifting with the light, the angle, and the time of day.
Available in both solid and micro-perforated configurations, the perforated option incorporates Arktura’s Soft Sound® acoustic backer, delivering meaningful sound absorption without sacrificing the system’s signature visual character.
SoundForm® — Acoustic Fluted Wall Panels
SoundForm® answered a persistent design challenge: how do you create a wall that looks custom-made but is actually an adaptive architectural system? Built around three sculptural flute profiles: curved, rectangular, and V-shaped, and made from Arktura’s Soft Sound® material (100% PET felt with up to 60% recycled content), SoundForm® delivers the dimensional depth thanks to optional integrated indirect lighting.
Metal Baffles — Precision-Engineered Ceiling Baffles
Metal Baffles brings a new dimension of sculptural energy to commercial ceilings. Precision-engineered from powder-coated sheet metal, the system paired straight linear baffles with curved and angled baffles across multiple radii, enabling designers to envision dynamic, site-specific ceiling compositions without the cost or lead time of fully custom fabrication.
Gentle curves flowed into crisp linear elements — a single suspended array could guide movement through a space, define a zone, or create a dramatic focal point above an entry sequence.
Our new SoundForm® collection was selected as winners for two Best of NeoCon Awards. Gold in Lighting (Sconces) and Silver in Acoustic Solutions.
SoundForm® also took home an Interior Design HiP Product Award for Acoustical Lighting. Our very own John Johnston was also awarded a HiP People Award for Architectural Products Leader.
The energy on the show floor this year was unlike anything we’ve felt in a long time, and that was entirely because of the designers, architects, and collaborators who came through our spaces, asked great questions, and pushed us to think bigger. NeoCon 2026 reminded us why this show matters — and we’re already thinking about what we’ll bring next year.
Missed us at the show or want to dive deeper into any of the new systems? Reach out to your local Arktura rep or explore everything we debuted at arktura.com.
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