Stockholm 2013: robotic arms move across a landscape of delicate glass objects at this installation inside Stockholm’s Skeppsholmen Caverns (+ slideshow).
Above: photo by Ann Wåhlström
Glass Elephant is an installation of glass pieces by Swedish designers inside the grotto-like Skeppsholmen caverns belonging to the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities.
Above: glass objects by Ann Wåhlström
Each designer’s collection is paired with an industrial robot carrying out tasks such as brushing the objects with a feather duster, shining a spotlight on them or gently wobbling them.
Above: glass objects by Carina Seth Andersson
Participating designers include Whatswhat, Magnus Elebäck and Chris Martin of Massproductions, Note Design Studio, Johannes Carlström and Åsa Jungnelius.
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
“I wanted to personify the robots, to make them as much human as machine,” says Jungnelius. “They could be about to engage in some kind of jerky wrestling match.”
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
The objects are glamourised consumer items, she adds. “The desire for material things is universal, but what exactly do we become without our fetishes and the props we surround ourselves with? Cave people?”
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
The exhibition also includes work by Simon Klenell and John Astbury, Ann Wåhlström, Carina Seth Andersson and Katja Pettersson.
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
Designed by Stockholm-based studio TAF Arkitekter, the exhibition is a collaboration between Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair and ABB and is open until 9 February at the caverns – called Bergrummen – on Skeppsholmen, Svensksundsvägen 5.
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
Also in Stockholm this week, Swedish lighting brand Wästberg unveiled an installation of 30 lamps by Japanese designers Nendo – see more design installations on Dezeen.
Above: glass objects by Simon Klenell
We’ve reported on lots of products at Stockholm Design Week so far, including a chair that can be dressed up in an assortment of garments and a tiered spun metal lamp – see all products and news from Stockholm Design Week.
Here’s some more information from the Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair:
Glass Elephant – fragile glass and heavy industrial robots in a poetic installation
An elephant in a china shop? No – just heavy industrial robots in a landscape of glass. As part of Stockholm Design Week 4-10 February 2013, Glass Elephant, a design installation in the borderland between industrial design, craftsmanship and performance, is on show in the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities’ Skeppsholmen Caverns.
Glass Elephant is a unique, creative collaboration between Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair and ABB.
“The purpose of the installation is to diversify and vitalise Stockholm Design Week’s image as an innovative and dynamic meeting place for the best in Scandinavian design. We want to create inspiring experiences and added value for both industry professionals and interested members of the public,” explains Cecilia Nyberg, Event Manager of Stockholm Design Week and Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair, which acts as the hub around which Design Week has developed in the last decade.
The exhibition explores the properties of glass as material and muse, and tells a story about the meeting of contrasts. Gossamer glass meets robot arms of steel and the advanced tactile technology of the hand meets the indefatigable precision of the machine in a floating, inquisitive interplay. The exhibition architecture has been designed by TAF Arkitekter.
“Our basic concept originates in the cavern setting, which is completely without natural light. We want to emphasise the existing space and have added what was not already there. So the installation design has windows as a theme – they are symbolic, as you can’t see out,” says Gabriella Gustafson, TAF Arkitekter.
The work of some of Sweden’s most trendsetting designers is featured in Glass Elephant, including Åsa Jungnelius:
“I’ve chosen to concentrate on the rock and the forces living within it. That’s why I wanted to personify the robots, to make them as much human as machine. They could be about to engage in some kind of jerky wrestling match. There’ll be a number of glass objects around the robots, fetishes from the consumer society, including a giant pink diamond. This is intended to create a somewhat abrasive image of the love of consumerism, something that’s in the process of changing. The desire for material things is universal, but what exactly do we become without our fetishes and the props we surround ourselves with? Cave people?” wonders Åsa Jungnelius.
Other designers taking part are Ann Wåhlström; Carina Seth Andersson; Katja Pettersson; Magnus Elebäck and Chris Martin, Massproductions; Johannes Carlström, Note Design Studio; Simon Klenell and John Astbury, Whatswhat.
The installation is open to the public 5-9 February 12-6 pm and is located in the Skeppsholmen Caverns, the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities.
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