On the 7th - 11th of February, Vilnius Academy of Arts will be exhibiting at Stockholm Furniture Fair for the first time. Eight selected young designers explore four pillars of the design industry's future - sustainable, social, collectible, and contemporary design. From furniture made from biodegradable milk- protein-based biomaterial to objects emphasising the cult of a face in our society, the exposition brings together the brightest Lithuanian talents.
Stockholm Furniture Fair is a part of Stockholm Design Week. Every year it receives around 40 000 visitors from 100 countries. VAA exposition will take place at the Greenhouse venue alongside other selected young designers and design schools.
About selected design objects
Vilius Dringelis
Candlestick Vilnius Wastewater
Industrial production uses a hierarchical, linear workflow to avoid mistakes, limiting the designer’s expression as an artist. However, it is useful to view error as a creative stimulus in the process, treating it as a moment of wandering rather than classifying it as a defect.
In the creative process, observing the environment and thinking in a three-dimensional mental dimension, the aim is to see and transform signs into new design objects with the help of foil and 3D scanning technologies. Such a principle can unexpectedly discover expressions that would be difficult to achieve based on drawings and logical aspects.
Marija Puipaitė
Pouf Devoted Surfaces
In her creative practice, the designer investigates bodily feelings in design objects. She seeks a sensual and ambiguous connection with the material environment that surrounds us.
In this case, the designer is experimenting with shape and texture: sculpting the form which then is upholstered with linen, a material with strong historical and sensuous connotations since it was used for undergarments and lace making for centuries before cotton replaced it.
The main interest for the designer is in worn-out objects, places, and surfaces as embodiments and signs of touch, of the worn, lived, used, prayed – surfaces and places that gather traces of a human being. Typologically, this work is a hybrid piece, at once a seat, a toy, and a garment.
Indrė Motiejūnaitė
Coat Hanger ARCH22
ARCH22 is a playful collectible design item. The hanger is inspired by the most prominent trends of 2022 which have prevailed in the field of furniture design. Inspiration for such a design came from the resurgent trend of arches.
ARCH22 is unique because it is covered with an unusual material – purple flock. This tactile fabric gives an aesthetic edge to a functional clothing hanger. The frame was made of light wood and as a result, is easily transportable.
Gaudutė Žilytė
Interactive Space for Children with Various Neurotypes KUKUBU
When implementing policies for inclusive education and employment of autistic people, it is important to reevaluate the environment and the interaction between different neurotypes. The KUKUBU project has a goal to understand the autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the worldview and perspective of an autistic person. It is done through observation and interviews of individuals, as well as virtual communities of autistic people. After formulating good design criteria and taking into account the characteristics of an autistic person’s thinking, communication, and sensory systems, the KUKUBU space was designed to communicate and rest, introducing neurotypical children to the world of their neurodiverse peers.
The KUKUBU space could become a bridge establishing contact with an autistic child. The KUKUBU prototype consists of wooden cubes covered with elastic fabric, designed to hide or connect into closed structures for communication — not through verbal or body language, but through shared sensory experiences.
Viktorija Balčiūnaitė
Sideboard from Biodegradable Milk-Protein Based Solid Biomaterial
Overconsumption and the still existing linear economic principle led to research and development of this project. Cheap synthetic, environmentally harmful materials - MDF, MDP, LMDP, FMDP panels are widely used in the furniture industry and are made from wood waste or wood fibers, which are glued with synthetic resins using pressure and heat.
An experimental lab study found that milk is the most suitable product for developing biomaterials due to its physical properties. This way, the waste of milk is avoided and a completely new product is created.
This new biomaterial promises the possibility to use surplus dairy products for the production of alternative materials and their successful integration into furniture design solutions. Milk-based biomaterial can be used as a coating for chipboard and other panels. And by using agricultural materials, can also be used as a binding material in the production of panels.
Elena Lašaitė
Face Table
The designer believes that our body is the direct carrier of our identity. The identity discussed in her research interacts with the physical protection of one's data and with the neurotic desire of the individual to preserve his or her identity, even if there is no real threat to it.
Today, our face has more power than ever before. By protecting our face, we protect our identity. The face is us.
The object created by the designer seeks to make sense of the research conclusion that we are a society of faces. The designer's own face became the main focus of the work, which was deliberately duplicated, scaled, and the legibility of the image destroyed or emphasised.
Inga Valentinienė
Chair from fibrous plants
This product is made from natural biodegradable materials and renewable resources, therefore is easily recyclable. Raw materials of Lithuanian origin, locally-sourced fibrous plants such as hemp (cannabis sativa), flax (linum usitatissimum l.) and nettle (urtica dioica l.) are used to create the base of the chairs.
For the biomass of plant fibers and woody particles only biological binders and molding technologies are used, employing the ability of fibrous plants to stick together with cellulose bonds.
The chairs are created following the principles of sustainable economy. If widely used in the furniture industry it would solve the problem of furniture disposal; help stop negative ecological factors; and contribute to the promotion and implementation of sustainability policy in Lithuania and Europe.
Liepa Marija Gradauskaitė
Seating Object Curve
The unusual typology and unique form of the furniture invites the user to try it and use it intuitively. Designed to adapt to the curves of the human body, it is therefore undeniably comfortable, used both for short and for long periods of time. Sitting on this furniture encourages to activate muscle groups that are less often used in everyday life.
Curve also solves the problem of slouching by providing support for the inner part of the thighs. The flat front of the furniture allows you to lean on it and also functions as a short-term workplace. A smaller version of this furniture can be made to be used by children.
Curve can be made of various materials - covering expanded polystyrene base with papier-mâché from used paper, metal, cast from concrete, therefore allowing wide possibilities of use: suitable in the home environment, outdoor areas, cafes, and shopping centers. All the materials offered can be easily recycled, and thus are sustainable and environmentally conscious.
