Close knit
Emerging designers stretch the scope of Kvadrat Febrik textiles
This year’s 3 Days of Design, which is set to take place in Copenhagen from 3 to 5 September, will see Kvadrat Febrik explore the potential of its knitted textiles in an exhibition titled ‘Knit! By Kvadrat’. The young Dutch brand, formerly known as Febrik and newly acquired by Danish textile giant Kvadrat, has commissioned 28 emerging designers from around the world to create furniture and objects using its fabric range.
‘The textile is the protagonist; we’re giving the designers the freedom to do whatever they like,’ says Njusja de Gier, Kvadrat Group’s senior vice president of branding and communications, and curator of the company’s many collaborations. ‘Knit! By Kvadrat’ is the fourth in its Design Projects series, following installations dedicated to the Hallingdal 65, Divina and Canvas textile ranges.
For Febrik’s co-founder and creative director Renee Merckx, the new exhibition is a celebration of knitting innovation. ‘The knitting technique gives us so many possibilities and ways to design a textile; not only can we work with colours, but we can also play with a knit’s three-dimensionality by creating new binding structures,’ she says. The pieces – four of which are detailed here – are eclectic and colourful, bringing to life the opportunities offered by Kvadrat Febrik’s product.∂ ‘Knit! By Kvadrat’ runs 3-5 September at the Kvadrat showroom in Copenhagen, Pakhus 48, Klubiensvej 22. A virtual tour is available from 3 September at kvadrat.dk
‘Berg’, by Lim + Lu
Hong Kong-based duo Elaine Lu and Vincent Lim were drawn to a specific fabric when they created ‘Berg’ (opposite and previous page), which references the majesty of icebergs while accentuating the sculptural properties of Febrik’s knits. A departure from the couple’s typically vibrantly coloured output, ‘Berg’ utilises a crisp white fabric to accentuate the knitted texture. This is complemented by a polished stainless steel base, to create the illusion that the fabric is floating. The design was inspired by Lim and Lu’s honeymoon in Iceland, where they were astonished by the architecture of icebergs. ‘An iceberg as an object has a universal mystique that everyone is drawn to,’ says Lim.
‘Coalesce’, by Studio Truly Truly
Manipulated materials feature frequently in the work of husband-and-wife duo Kate and Joel Booy, of Rotterdam’s Studio Truly Truly. They were captivated by the flexibility of Febrik knits, and their piece explores creative ways to upholster an object. ‘That technicality is interesting – seeking out the rules, then figuring out how to play with them,’ says Joel. Their ‘Coalesce’ chair (previous page) represents their dual creative impulses: to explore material processes, but also create pieces that are aesthetically polished. The chair is bolted onto a glass bottom, to appear as if it’s pressed into the glass; there’s seemingly a conversation between hard and soft elements.
‘Ofset’ chairs, by Ana Kraš
When Ana Kraš received her fabric samples and laid them across her desk, she loved how they worked together. She wanted to construct something using multiple fabrics. ‘When I decided on chairs, I thought about something more conceptual – something that would mimic the experience of visiting a gallery, something temporary,’ says the New-york-based designer. Created with offset panels, her collection of seats (above and previous page) evokes a waiting room. In a palette ranging from brown, apricot and tan to rich blue and grey, the chairs incorporate the linear motifs for which Kraš is known, while powder-coated aluminium fabric joints eliminate the need for stitching.
‘Chroma Columns’, by Raw Color
Colour was the natural starting point for this Eindhoven-based, multidisciplinary design studio, which decided to create something more playful than a standard furniture piece. ‘Chroma Columns’ (previous page) is a vertical display that highlights the shifting nature of colour. The studio installed a series of upholstered triangular prisms on motorised plinths, which rotate to create a kaleidoscopic effect. ‘You feel the sense of beautiful colour combinations,’ says studio co-founder Christoph Brach, ‘and the sense that the piece is open to be interpreted in the space in which it lives, be it as a display piece, a room divider or otherwise.’