Architectural Fashion

INNOCAD and 13&9

The “Architectural Fashion” exhibition traveled from Berlin to New York, Chicago, and Venice — where it was featured in the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Architecture Biennale 2016 at the European Cultural Centre.

The installation is based on INNOCAD and 13&9’s three existing projects — The Golden Nugget, Rolling Stones and Moving Floors — reinterpreting the work through fashion and sound-video installation. Instead of the traditional transfer of information, each project’s corresponding installation (all crafted and developed at INNOCAD) takes a transdisciplinary approach, resulting in a transformation that captures the over-all concept.

Rolling Stones is a multi-object interior design composition situated at the entrance of Graz’s armory. Translated into the confines of space for the exhibition, it takes shape as a wearable armor made of natural stone veneer cut with a CO2 laser for high precision, and then adapted to a woman’s body. It is comprised of layers of repeated elliptical forms that symbolize the cobblestones that inspired the project.

Golden Nugget is a mixed-use residential and office building located in Graz. Its golden rhombus-shaped surface and built-in adaption to the golden section make the Golden Nugget stand out. These defining elements are reinterpreted into a strictly constructed sculptural dress: A 3D-knitted band of metal threads, folded into mirrored equilateral pentagons, is based on the principles of the golden section. What results is a garment with conceptual purity that changes its shape according to the viewer’s perspective.

Moving Floors is a modular carpet tile design that allows users to build their own floor landscape out of 5 different patterns inspired by optical art. Reinterpreted for the exhibition, an acoustic wool design starts as a tile on the ground, and ascends to form a pillar-like sculpture. The rough textile surface is manipulated with a lenticular effect and gradient elements seem to grow out of the felt.

Video recordings documenting the making of the installations from concept to completion accompany each design. Along with the video, a soundscape produced in 13&9’s sound studio incorporate the sounds of the metal, stone and felt materials used in the exhibition. The three audio tracks, one for each project, merge together according to each visitor’s position. As guests walk from piece to piece, the metallic sounds of the Golden Nugget integrate with the harsh tones of Rolling Stones and the blunt, soft elements of Moving Floors. The three Mannequins dressed in conceptual fashions are positioned in front of large mirrors that transform the existing space and blur its boundaries.

Art Direction: Anastasia Su and Martin Lesjak
Fashion Design: Sabrina Stadlober
Sound Design: Severin Su
Exhibition Production: Annabell Spötl, Harald Glanz and Jörg Kindermann

Photo: Architectural Fashion © Markus Mans

 

Photo: Architectural Fashion at Architektur Galerie Berlin © Jan Bitter <