It´s all about space: design students from Pallas UAS are creating at Stockholm Furniture Fair playful environment PROJECT 301

Exposition PROJECT 301 by the textile and furniture design students of the Pallas University of Applied Siences creates an environment at the Stockholm Furniture Fair where objects provide opportunities for both concentration and communication. The project can be explored from the 6th to the 10th of February at the design school’s Greenhouse area.

How to unite opposite needs – on one side, you have an open and inclusive learning environment, but on the other, you facilitate work or quiet focused learning. Pallas students of the Department of Textile and Department of Furniture had the mission to discover out what is a good environment for study and work. Participants of the project offered different solutions based on the lecture hall Tä-301, which, though known to them as a good learning environment, could be further developed with clever solutions. Analyzing the needs of students, it became evident that the main importance lies in two main aspects. For one, the functions of the objects available in the room and two, the acoustics of the room. The design teams main focus became creating universal and wide-grasping solutions based on an example room.

During the project, the inventions we got were playful, often combining multiple functions to reveal a solution from an unexpected angle. In the creation of prototypes, students actively sought sustainable solutions, utilizing predominantly recycled materials in the realization of the objects. Through the analysis, combination, and enhancement of material properties, various objects with different characteristics were produced, using mainly leftover materials. Visitors are invited to test the functionality of these objects at the Stockholm Furniture Fair.

Martin Soome and Brigitte Mihkelson worked together to make an acoustic panel SHIFT, which dampens the noise generated in the room and softens incoming daylight. Shifting the panel plays with how the light interacts with the room.

Egel Talv and India Maria Emilia Kiisler’s collaborative effort resulted in the adjustable tabletop KLAPP, which can be used as an acoustic partition and a bulletin board. It also provides the opportunity for team collaboration in an open space. The writing board is made of glulam, which makes good use of even the smallest pieces of wood. A new experimental material from wool was created for the acoustic panel.

Isabel Mündel’s and Sofia Lanman’s recycled textile objects „Plantshh” introduce a enviornmentally friendly interior design solution. Soft leaf motifs of different variations help to decorate public spaces.

Boris Pakk and Marite Rikkas created a lightwheight object, RYNK, that absorb sound suspended under the ceiling or as an asymmetrical ottoman.

Märt-Kaarel Petser, Mark Drõgin and Kristiin Kuuslap material experimentation is aimed at seperating the user from noise while not hindering conversing with other people. The result is a spotty and patterned armchair and ottoman named TUUST. The armchair’s backrest can be transformed into a separating hood to retreat from visual and auditory disturbances.

Students participating in project: Boris Pakk, Brigitte Mihkelson, Egel Talv, India Maria Emilia Kiisler, Isabel Mündel, Kristiin Kuuslap, Marite Rikkas, Mark Drõgin, Martin Soome, Märt-Kaarel Petser, Sofia Lanman.

Supervisors: Madis Liplap, Aet Ollisaar.
Project photos: Andrus Kannel, authors.
Special thanks: Paragon Sleep ja KIUD packaging
Project is supported by Cultural Endowment of Estonia.

More info about the project in Instagram and Facebook page: @pallas_stckhlmfair

Pallas UAS exposition can be found at Stockholm Furniture Fair Hall C, Greenhouse C03:38: https://www.stockholmfurniturefair.se/2024/digital-stands/pallas-uas–department-of-textile-and-department-of-furniture

More information:
Prof Aet Ollisaar
Head of Department of Textile Pallas UAS
aet.ollisaar@pallasart.ee