The Making of Design PLANT 2021 - DOMESTIC
เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 years ago
The Making of Design PLANT 2021 – DOMESTIC
By DesignPLANT
“Design Plant” is a name that the design circles are well familiar with. Starting from a gathering of Thai furniture designers who have been working together continuously since 2013, Design Plant serves as a central space for collecting and exchanging design experiences for designers, entrepreneurs, and manufacturers in Thailand to connect opportunities and create collaborations both in terms of business and service, as well as to present works developed under challenging themes that vary from year to year.
Still lingering in 2021 is the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, a predicament where global citizens are incarcerated, locked up in one place for years. With this in mind, we, Design Plant, designated the word “DOMESTIC” as the theme for its BKKDW2021 project, inviting designers to engage in speculative questioning about new possibilities in their daily lives. We invited the team from Thinkk Studio, the organizer of BKKDW2021, to tell us about the origin and working process of its exhibition where it attempted to use creativity to turn constraints into designs you might not be able to imagine.
“Last year, almost all of us were stuck in our own country. This limitation has affected us all, and designers are no exception. We, therefore, invite everyone to explore new possibilities in the country,” said Jaravee “Looktarn” Thongbunrueang, Thinkk Studio’s Exhibition Content & Project Coordinator, telling us about the interpretation of the internal contexts, such as natural capitals, community lifestyles, interactions between designers and other people, and questioning about beliefs that are intangible yet permeate the entire fabric of lifestyle.
Process to New Possibilities
Once this year’s theme had been decided, Design Plant posted an announcement for submissions of ideas for design development via its Facebook page. This time, there is “Emerging Plant,” a special experimental project aiming to handpick ten groups of young designers who are students and those who graduated less than two years yet are brimming at the seams with fresh ideas to collaborate with well-versed, professional designers and resourceful veteran entrepreneurs who are loaded with real work experience.
49 selected works will be divided into five categories and exhibited by the exhibition team in a space in ATT 19, Charoenkrung 30, that will be transformed using materials from sponsors, such as curved plywood by Khem Tid brand, and divided into sections to perfectly complement the works put on display in them, making the works more appealing. In addition, the team will also organize a chair-making workshop where visitors will learn how to make chairs from curved plywood before taking the finished products to use at homes because “Domestic” does not only mean “in the country” but also means “in the household.”
The bright green poster — this exhibition’s key visual that was conceived from the collaboration with Studio 150 building on the concept of the exhibition — comes with the word “Domestic” that is retractable within the grid range to communicate the possibilities within the limit itself.
From Far to Near
Highlights from all five categories are put on display in the order of how close they are to us in terms of feeling, starting with the ones that feel farthest away from us before gradually moving into the ones that feel closest to us.
“Nation” features works that are not limited to one specific area, but have a broad impact on society as a whole, including Domestic Alternative Materials by Thinkk Studio that experimented with 12 different types of waste materials to find ways to replace traditional materials; and SPIRULINA SOCIETY by sustainability-minded designer ANYA MUANGKOTE who created kits to grow algae for urban residents using materials with the least environmental impact, which not only helps produce food and reduce waste production, but also can replace a lamp, given the fact that the kit is equipped with a lamp for growing algae;
“Local” features works that are influenced or inspired by culture, craftsmanship, or raw material in a neighborhood, district, community, and province that designers are well familiar with, including Work From Phrakanong by Work From Phrakanong, twin product designer and graphic designer who joined forces with seamstresses to test the potential of the Phra Khanong district through the creation of bags; and MITI Screen designed by SARNSARD who made handwoven room dividers featuring a wide range of functions using leaves of screw pines, a plant commonly found in the south;
“Community” features works that stem from the co-dependency and close acquaintance between designers and other people, including VANZTER by Patthamon “Nam Yen” Sukkasem who was fascinated by “Dek Vanz” (motorpunk) subculture and joined hands with motorpunks in experimenting with motorcycle pipe modification skills, which culminated in eye-catching iridescent vases; and Fat boy and Nigma by kitt.ta.khon who made woven chairs that allow users to create their own patterns and artisans to bring their individuality into their works to the fullest;
“Residence” features works for household use that meet modern lifestyle needs, providing convenience and comfort, including Canvas – Fine(art) Dining Table by PDM that further developed Japanese tables incorporating patterns designed by Thai artists and printed in high resolution on waterproof materials so that it can serve as a tangible work of art when folded and hung on the wall; and JOINT (T) by Studio YAK that made ceramic tiles of the same size as that of the tiles in the market, but with hangers molded to the tiles so that there is no need for glues nor nails for installing them;
“Feeling” features works developed based mainly on what is inside the minds of the designers, from tastes, passions, and interests to beliefs, emotions, and feelings, including Emotion Collector by CO-DE who created a mood tracker device for daily use that allows for collecting the data on the user’s moods by selecting mood colors and clapping hands to send the data to the device and for showing the collection of each of the emotions each month in the format of color lighting; and P(S)OLUTION by 11:11 which is an incense burner sleekly redesigned in the 2020s style.
Takeaways from the Exhibition
“What the audiences will be able to take away from the exhibition for sure is an abundance of ideas. Most importantly, the ideas were conceived in Thailand when we had to be incarcerated, locked up in our homes. Besides, we will be able to catch a glimpse of the current design trends where Thai designers attach great importance to more sustainable materials and processes,” said Jaravee “Looktarn” Thongbunrueang, Thinkk Studio’s Exhibition Content & Project Coordinator, confidently reiterating that, despite not attending the chair-making workshop nor buying some works and taking them home, it is guaranteed that everyone who has the opportunity to visit this exhibition will definitely get some ideas back.
