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    Medprostor stacks firewood for Ljubljana design biennial exhibition

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    Firewood logs were used as modular stackable elements for the scenography of the BIO27 Super Vernaculars design biennial in Ljubljana, Slovenia, which has been shortlisted for a 2023 Dezeen Award.

    Curated by Jane Withers, the 27th edition of the city’s design biennial took place at the Museum of Architecture and Design (MAO) in the summer of 2022.
    Firewood was stacked in various ways to stage the BIO27 Super VernacularsThe four-month presentation explored how designers and architects are adapting vernacular traditions and value systems to respond to contemporary challenges like water scarcity, waste and declining biodiversity.
    Similarly, the brief for the exhibition design was to rethink classic parameters and consider sustainability in the context of a temporary show.
    The firewood bundles were used to display various design projects throughout MAOSlovenian architecture studio Medprostor chose to create the scenography from a readily available, locally sourced material that could be entirely reused at the end of the show.

    “Walls, planes, piles and lines of firewood are a part of the Slovenian visual landscape, as almost 59 per cent of the country is forested,” said Medprostor.
    “By only using the standard logs and non-invasive stacking and binding methods, all the material was returned to the supplier for further resale and use.”
    The logs were pre-cut to standard lengths so they could be reusedPre-cut to standard lengths, the logs were oriented vertically and bound together to create tables and platforms of varying heights and sizes throughout the exhibit areas.
    Some of the logs were notched in their tops to hold photographs and texts mounted on honeycomb cardboard sheets, which also formed flat horizontal surfaces for displaying items by participating designers.
    Photos mounted onto honeycomb cardboard were placed in notches on top of the logsBundles were also laid on their sides to act as low-lying display podiums for larger pieces.
    “The aim was to explore ways of stacking wood that are based in traditional techniques but can at the same time support new shapes and methods that evoke a sense of contemporaneity,” Medprostor said.
    Orange and grey straps recycled from the shipping industry were used to bind the logsThe grey and orange straps used to bind the wood and to hang cardboard panels from the ceiling were reused from the shipping industry.
    A few panels also incorporated video screens or served as a backdrop for projections, adding another medium through which the curated projects could be articulated.

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    Medprostor collaborated with graphic designers Studio Kruh and AA to continue the low-impact approach to the exhibition graphics and signage, which were primarily printed on-site at the museum.
    Additionally, the firewood was able to extend its drying process for the duration of the biennial, making it more energy-efficient when finally used as fuel, according to the studio.
    Hanging panels incorporated video screens and were used as projector backdrops”The drier the wood, the higher heating value and better environmental footprint it has,” Medprostor said. “While in the museum, logs can dry additionally and be returned to the supplier for further resale with a better ecological footprint.”
    “The museum becomes a part of the process of curing the wood.”
    All of the firewood was returned to the supplier when the exhibition endedThe BIO27 Super Vernaculars scenography has been shortlisted in the exhibition design category of the 2023 Dezeen Awards, along with a shrink-wrapped exhibition design by Didier Faustino and a showcase of recycled steel chairs by Daisuke Yamamoto.
    The awards will be presented during a ceremony and party in London on Tuesday 28 November 2023, with creative direction by The Unlimited Dream Company.
    The photography is by Ana Skobe and Klemen Ilovar.
    BIO27 Super Vernaculars took place at the Museum of Architecture and Design (MAO), Ljubljana, Slovenia from 26 May to 29 September 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
    Project credits:
    Location: Museum of Architecture and Design (MAO), Ljubljana, SloveniaExhibition design: Medprostor: Rok Žnidaršič, Jerneja Fischer Knap, Katarina Čakš, Teja GorjupGraphic design: Studio Kruh + AACurator: Jane WithersAssistant curator: Ria HawthornBIO27 director: Anja Radović

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      Nika Zupanc brings “Alice in Wonderland ambience” to Morela eyewear store in Ljubljana

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      Massive lamps, rotating mirrors and a legion of drawers feature inside the Morela eyewear store, which Slovenian designer Nika Zupanc has completed in Ljubljana.

      Morela has been offering optician services in the Slovenian capital since the early 2000s and went on to launch its own line of glasses in 2019.
      Locally based Zupanc was brought in to design both the brand’s debut eyewear collection and now the retail space to match.
      Powder-blue drawers appear throughout the Morela eyewear storeSet in Ljubljana’s Citypark shopping centre, the store is defined by the slim powder-blue drawers with brass knobs, which appear everywhere from the cash desk to the base of the freestanding counters and low-lying sideboards.
      “The client had a clear idea of how many glasses they wanted to display on the shelves, how many they wanted to put in the drawers and how many they wanted to display on the tables,” explained Zupanc.

      “Thus a drawer became a unit of measurement and served as a building block, from which the entire interior was created.”
      Brass-edged mirrors can be turned to show different angles of the storeThe abundant storage is also a nod to one of Zupanc’s earlier designs – a 140-drawer cylindrical cabinet she created for Milan’s Rossana Orlandi Gallery in 2017.
      Eyewear models are displayed along the sides of the room inside brass-framed shelves that mirror the proportions of the drawers.
      A curtain hides treatment rooms at the back of the storeTo enhance the “Alice in Wonderland ambience” of the space, Zupanc introduced two huge floor lamps with pleated white shades, both handmade in Italy.
      One towers above the cash desk while the other pokes out through a blush-coloured velvet pouf to provide both lighting and seating. Alternatively, customers can sit on velvet-upholstered high chairs that are dotted across the room.

      Nika Zupanc designs a tower of drawers for storing keepsakes

      Mirrors are suspended from a thin brass picture rail that runs along the perimeter of the room. Each is housed in a circular brass frame and can be rotated to reflect different angles of the room.
      The rail also holds heavy powder-blue curtains that separate the main shop floor from a treatment area and repair room at the rear of the plan.
      A brass pipe runs along the upper edge of the roomOther striking eyewear stores include Vision Studio in Melbourne, which hides behind a perforated aluminium facade, and the Cubitts shop in London’s Soho, which nods to the sex shops and adult cinemas found in the notorious neighbourhood.
      The photography is by Saša Hess.

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      Ljubljana apartment by Arhitektura d.o.o features mobile steel furnishings and silver curtains

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      Arhitektura d.o.o has fit out this apartment in the Slovenian capital with metallic moveable furniture so its owners can adapt the layout to suit their busy social lives. The apartment, named Rubikum for Three, is situated just outside the centre of Ljubljana and belongs to a young couple and their pet dog. They had previously
      The post Ljubljana apartment by Arhitektura d.o.o features mobile steel furnishings and silver curtains appeared first on Dezeen. More