Venice Design 2019. Traditional craft and limited resources

/ Design /

Venice Design is the largest exhibition of modern subject design in the context of the Venice Biennale, held for the fourth time in a row with the support of the European Cultural Center (ECC) in the heart of Venice - in the Palazzo Michiel del Brusà.

From May 11 to November 24, 2019, 65 independent designers from 30 countries will present their works in connection with the single declared theme of the exhibition - craftsmanship in modern design. Among the participants of the exhibition are Farah Abdelhamid (Egypt) with an incredible three-dimensional installation of multi-colored leather layers in the shape of an arch, Acoocooro (Mexico) with an exhibition of unusual multi-tiered ceramics inspired by objects from religious ceremonies, Masayo Ave (Japan) with a fascinating photo alphabet created by nature itself, Loreta Bilinskaite (Libya) with a wall panel and unusual modern embroidery, inspired by memories from the artist's childhood, Felicia Björklund (Sweden) with wooden decor in the shape of a wave, Sophia Chraïbi Giorgi (Morocco) with a minimalist "soft" bench, Luce Couillet (France) and her "living" decor made of horse hair, metal and paper, Ka-Sha (India), Tahir Mahmood (Pakistan) and many others.

The Venice Design exhibition is visited annually by more than half a million guests

A hanging installation consisting of photographs of a Catholic church. Mikaela Steby Stenfalk (Sweden)

Ukrainian object design on this international platform is presented for the first time by the works of Viktoria Yakusha from the FAINA collection: an original chest of drawers called SOLOD with a handmade clay facade, which uses the "house-paint" technique, and a collection of KUMANEC vases, inspired by household items of the Zaporozhian Cossacks. In addition to furniture and decor, Venice Design visitors also saw a documentary film about the first design expedition to Ukraine by world design gurus called "The Earth Inspires", organized in the fall of 2018 by the Yakusha Design team.

Dresser with SOLOD ceramic front, KUMANEC vase and SYTO wall decor from the FAINA collection

Ukrainian object design at Venice Design 2019 is represented by works from the FAINA collection by Victoria Yakusha

A series of KUMANEC vases, inspired by the household items of the Zaporizhia Cossacks

In addition to the main exposition, the event also includes 42 satellite locations in the heart of Venice, where local craftsmen, each working in their own original technique, demonstrate their skills during open workshops. Sculptors, glassblowers, jewelers, masters of leather and wood products — everyone can observe their creative process and even take a direct part in it.

A Venetian craftsman who makes traditional musical instruments

According to the organizers of the event, designers who influence the development of the industry and inspire their colleagues around the world are invited to participate in the international part of the exhibition this year.

"We wanted to create a kind of map of the most current trends in object design, to gather those who boldly experiment with authentic crafts and reproduce new meanings in modern objects in order to show their best works to a wide audience of the Biennale," says Anais Hammu, coordinator of the Venice Design 2019 program. — The FAINA collection is exactly that, and we are happy that Ukraine will finally present to the world its vision of subject design with its unique DNA."

A sofa in the style of the culture of the Roman Empire, i.e. Sophia Chraïbi Giorgi (Morocco)

Unusual handmade tapestries using ancient craft techniques from Luce Couillet (France)

The result of the group exhibition was also a subject design catalog, which on 200 pages introduces the stories of inspiration of each participant of Venice Design 2019. The book can be purchased at the exhibition or downloaded online directly from the website www.venice-design.com.

Installation in the form of an arch made of multi-colored leather layers. Farah Abdelhamid (Egypt)

At Venice Design 2019, the works of 65 subject designers from 30 countries are presented

Three-level mirrors from Barbara Calvo (Italy)

Anais Hammu told PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA about the difficulties the organizers had to face and the principles of participant selection:

"Every year we manage to gather within the framework of Venice Design those designers who pay great attention to the traditions and cultural roots of their region. This year, among the participants of the exposition, we also noticed a serious attention to the environmental friendliness of materials and responsible consumption, considering the limited resources on the planet. It is obvious that these questions encourage craftsmen to new initiatives, which are designed to restore the practice of using traditional craft techniques in design as more environmentally friendly than automated and robotic ones.

Experimental subjects and materials. The use of old craft techniques

Mixing of modern technologies and traditional textiles in items of clothing

The FAINA collection is a bright representative of this design movement, which needs to be reunited with Ukrainian roots, individuality and authenticity. This approach is very impressive to us, and we believe in its future worldwide.

Most designers prefer traditional craft techniques

Hand-woven panel with interwoven LED tape by Suzanne Tick (USA)

Organizing such a large-scale event as Venice Design, which lasts more than six months and involves more than a hundred participants, is a huge challenge. But our goal is to create an independent platform that represents global trends in object design, which motivates and gives strength. Last year, our location was visited by more than half a million people from all over the world.

Volumetric tapestries by Nina van Bart (Holland)

This is a very exciting job, because for the selection of participants we travel a lot and visit various exhibitions, fairs and events that open up new names for us and introduce us to innovations in the field of design. On our platform, we give a chance to young talents and experienced designers alike to present their unique works, provoke viewers and invite them to an important dialogue about the future of design."

 

Text: Tatiana Franchuk