Stockholm Furniture Fair Talks offers a dedicated program with keynote speakers and inspiring design and architecture talks throughout the week. Amongst the speakers on the main stage, you will find designers such as Sabine Marcelis, Stephen Burks and Raw Edges as well as architects such as Anders Lendager and Victoria Millestrup from BIG.
“Equality and diversity are the biggest challenges facing the world of design,” says American designer Stephen Burks, one of the invited keynote speakers at Stockholm Furniture Fair Talks in February. Using his practice as a starting point, he will share insights from his many years of working with craft and diversity in his design practice. Joining him on the main stage in the Victoria Hall throughout the week are designers such as Sabine Marcelis, Raw Edges, Ilse Crawford and Philippe Malouin. While working in different manners and frame work, they will all generously share their knowledge and insights of working in the current now. This is also true for the invited architects. Anders Lendager of Lendager Group will share his vast knowledge of working with reuse and upcycling. Ukrainian Borys Dorogov managing partner and COO of Balbaek Bureau will share how the Ukrainian architectural community help their country deal with the devastating aftermath of the Russian aggression and speak about RE: Ukraine, a modular urban system to accommodate displaced persons. Other invited keynote speakers include the collectible design curator Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte, founder of Carwan Gallery and the collectible fair Nomad, who will speak about the importance of cultural sustainability.
Throughout the week there will be a number of knowledge sharing panel debates with initiated discussions all focused on new initiatives and ways of working for a better tomorrow. Some of the panels take place at the main stage at the Victoria Hall while others are located at the Greenhous stage and the Swedish Design Movement fair stand. There will also be several talks on a stage in Hall K11, where some of the exhibitors share their knowledge within their special field.
Highlights from Stockholm Furniture Fair Talks
Creating Inventive Tactile Design: the process of Raw Edges
Founded in 2007, Raw Edges studio is a London-based design and research practice with clients such as Louis Vuitton, Stella McCartney and Vitra – and their work has been showcased in places such as MoMA and the Vitra Design Museum. Transforming everyday objects, its founders, Yael Mer and Shay Alkalay, develop inventive tactile, furniture, interiors and installations. In their keynote speech the duo will talk about the way they develop new ideas for products and limited edition pieces by experimenting and researching for their clients Vitra, Louis Vuitton +Halle, and of course their new kitchen Bruta for Superfront that will be presented at the fair for the first time. February 7th 11 am, Victoria Hall.
The importance of cultural sustainability with Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte
Italian-based art director and collectible design curator Nicolas Bellavance- Lecompte is the founder of Carwan Gallery, which has launched unique commissioned projects with architects and designer such as India Mahdavi, Vincenzo De Cotiis and Marcin Rusak among others. He is also the founder of the collectible fair Nomad that since 2016 has partnered with some of the most exclusive luxury brands including Gucci, Dior, and Christie’s. In his career Bellavance-Lecompte has curated more than 65 design exhibitions for private galleries, museums and institutions. In his talk he will share his work within the collectible design scene, and speak about the importance of cultural sustainability and the role contemporary design play in preserving cultural heritage and artistry. February 9th 12 am, Victoria Hall.
Unbuilding architecture with Anders Lendagar
As we are looking into a world where we don’t build – how does that affect architecture? Architect Anders Lendager is the founder and CEO of Lendager group, one of the most influential architecture studios and strategic consultancies working within the realm of circular economy. He will talk us through Upcycle Studios – the world’s first circular building that was built using construction waste from Copenhagen metro station – and Resource Rows, the first buildings to recycle entire brick sections from demolished buildings. He will also share how this knowledge has been developed further, from transforming wasted wood and recycled concrete to used windmill wings into the tallest wood building in Denmark, TRÆ. February 8th 10 am, Victoria Hall.
Shelter in place with Stephen Burks
In the wake of the global pandemic lockdown, Stephen Burks Man Made responded by redefining the relationship to our homes through a series of speculative prototypes, which debuted in their solo exhibition, Stephen Burks: Shelter In Place, currently on view at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. Through the exploration of complex themes ranging from spirituality, ancestry, and technology Stephen Burks and his studio will present their current thinking on domesticity at the intersection of craft, design and community. February 8th 1 pm, Victoria Hall.
Making it with Philippe Malouin
Canadian Philippe Malouin lives and works in London, where he founded his studio in 2009 after working for Tom Dixon. His diverse portfolio ranges from furniture and accessories to installations and art objects for design galleries such as Malouin celebrates imperfections and stark contrasts, and his work has gained him numerous awards throughout the years. He will share his work with materials and experimentations and showcase how working with galleries fuels his research and way of working. February 9th 1 pm, Victoria Hall.
The power of materials with Sabine Marcelis
Since graduating from the Design Academy of Eindhoven in 2011, Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis has built her own autonomous work as well worked with top clients in art, fashion and design including Fendi, Audi, IKEA and Hem. Her studio uses material research and experimentation to achieve new and surprising visual effects for projects both showcased in museums and commissioned by commercial clients, In her talk she will explore the power of materials – and how they can evolve and transform for the better. Besides letting the audience behind the scenes to some of her recent projects – she will also use her incredible experience to map out what role materials might play in the future for both her studio and the design industry at large. February 10th 11 am, Victoria Hall.
Stockholm Furniture Fair
Stockholm Furniture Fair is the world’s leading platform for Scandinavian design. For the 2023 edition a number of new features have been added, including the new platform Älvsjö gård focusing in collectible design, and The Nude Edition, a new exhibition area with smaller fair stands made if recycled material. The Guest of Honour for 2023 is the design studio Front, making it the first time the distinction goes to a Swedish design studio. Stockholm Furniture Fair 2023 runs from 7 to 11 February at Stockholmsmässan, in parallel with Stockholm Design Week which runs from 6 to 12 February.
Cover photo: 4PM by Chris Martin for Massproductions (Sweden) nominee Furniture of the year
