Campanas Workshop in Athens: eyes accumulations

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Albion Gallery, 16 Oct 2008 _ The Campanas in Athens

Brazilian designers Fernando and Humberto Campana have built over the last 25 years a solid career drawing inspiration from their immediate surrounds! As alchemists combining materials, textures, colours and dreams, the Campana Brothers created a unique vocabulary of design, giving poetry to “everyday” materials. Their latest creation, Yes Hotel Athens is borne of an exclusive partnership between the Brothers and Dakis Joannou, owner of YES! Hotels and among other, the founder of the DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art, member of the Board of Trustees of the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York and of the Tate International Council and also a member of the International Directors’ Council of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.

The Campana Brothers' first hotel project, Yes Hotel Athens is an adventurous design undertaking due to open in late Summer 2009. It is a pioneering venture of luxury accommodation set amongst ecofriendly design conceived by two of the most exciting designers of our time. Yes Hotel Athens integrates art, architecture and design, creating a “live in” sensation, transcending the Museum or Art Gallery experience, provoking the senses and challenging common space

perception.

An important part of the renovation project is the injection of ideas from a group of design and architecture students and young professionals who have formed a workshop under the tutelage of and in collaboration with Fernando and Humberto. The workshop group is creating furniture, producing samples and prototypes whilst exploring methods and techniques associated with the Campanas style: reusing and reinterpreting local material and culture.

On display at Albion Gallery during the launch of Yes Hotel Athens there will be 10 of their creations to showcase this fruitful collaboration.

Next Workshop _ November 2008

Tasks

FAVELA WALL IN RECEPTION
Dakis would like to see a Favela wall built in the reception (see doc attached). This wall will enclose a “peep whole” from which we will be able to see a special art commission, much in the molds of that Duchamp installation, where a naked woman can be seen from a whole in a fence.
For that, F+H would like the Favela to be built with wood slats of 1cm thickness, width of 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25cm, of different colors and textures. The important thing is that the wood need to look finished and “refined”. Please, take extra care with the nails. The pressure “nail-stapler” is a good solution to make the junctions invisible.

FAVELA COLUMN
Please, finish/reform the Favela column that has all sides in wood. F+H would like the 4 “corners” to be rounded, the top part to be more irregular in a root like shape. Please, do also create a system to remove the panels so maintenance can be done on the back light system.

FRAGMENT MINI BAR BOX
Although Humberto requested the sides to be fragmented, on a second thought he wishes to leave them straight, so that the room is not too busy with all the Fragment elements.

PILOT ROOM 210 WASHBASIN
Recreate a cardboard version of the prototype and finish with mirrored surface.
Keep the styrofoam prototype and send it back to Brazil. Campanas would like to keep it in the studio’s collection.

FRAGMENT WALL
To increase the volume and texture, we will need 2 sets of MDF with mat printed formica per room.
Please, send to Estudio Campana, or post on Flicker the options of old post cards of Athens. Watercolors were mentioned. Further instructions will follow after that.

FRAGMENT DESK
Campanas would like to see 2 desks made for November meeting:
VERSION 1: printed Fragement top
Print on top of the fragments the same image of the post card of the room. This time, let’s leave no gaps between the fragments.
VERSION 2: not printed Fragment top
Have a smooth 2 layered top with no Fragments, not carved nor real fragments.

May Workshop

Workshop at re-Hotel
Workshop minutes
March 20th 2008.
Presents: workshop architects, Fernando Campana, Humberto Campana, Leo Kim, Elina Axioti, Yorgos Tzirtzilakis, Constantino Economides.

CONTENT
_next workshop: to be scheduled for early May 2008.
_May workshop content: view of a finished piece of the chosen models in full scale and view of carpet designs and execution for rooms and corridors.
_image 1.1
_workshop checking: materials, finish, comfort.
_models execution: models to be executed by Nikos Zouboulis. The appointed fabricator, with the assistance of the workshop team.

SCHEME
_organization: divide workshop team in groups for specific assignments such as one group for chair design and execution, and a different team to focus on “black metal chairs, trolleys, kitchen tables, acrylic tables, round arm chirs”.
_floorplans: Campanas will send the floorplans for reference in designing and shaping the carpets for the rooms and corridors.
_workshop team: to assign a participant to measure and draw in a CAD file, the amount and dimensions of the existing carpets, separated by type of carpet print (flower print, blue dots, etc).
_carpet designs: to be sent for Campanas approval before May workshop.
_carpet detail: please keep in mind that the carpets will be in-built the floor carpet, in the same level._blog: all information and discussions held at workshop should be posted at the blog.

CALENDAR
_last workshop: will be themed Favela
_july workshop: will be themed Lamps installation

SPECIAL REQUESTS OF Mr. DAKIS IOANNOU
_furniture measurements: workshop team may be asked to assist in measuring the existing furniture of Olympic Palace.
_material and supplier research: workshop team may be asked to assist in the research for local materials and suppliers.

March Workshop

MARCH WORKSHOP (March 20th and 21)

Re-create the existing chairs for the restaurant (Scandinavian ones from the old restaurant):
part of the chairs will remain as they are (with its paint removed and possibility re-painted)
the other part will receive prosthesis (hybrid additions) Tasks:
Remove the old paint and varnish from its surfaces, making them smoother, and allowing it to be re-painted.
Apply the new varnish to its surfaces.
Each participant will restore a small number of chairs. Some will only be restored (cleaned and reupholstered) maintaining its original characteristics, only with a new layer of varnish, and the others will be transformed receiving hybrid applications.
These applications can be from different parts of other objects, but they must be applied resembling a “band-aid” or a parasite, alluding to the characteristic present in Campanas’ works, such as the TransPlastic collection.(Step one should be completed upon Campanas arrival on March 20th. All the material needed must be at hands. F+H should only help the group develop the hybrid transformations and the creation of the parasite chairs.)Timing: From March to May: Complete the renovation and hybridizing of the chairs following Campanas’ instructions.

participants

Elina Axioti
is an architect focusing on topics of theory and design. She has recently completed a Master of Research in Humanities and Cultural Studies at the London Consortium after graduating from the University of Thessaly in Greece. She has participated in several architectural competitions and exhibitions. Recent works include: Marginal Boundaries, a design project that negotiates 'limits' within the problematic of the theory of topology (http://marginalsurfaces.blogspot.com/) and Inhabitating the Bathroom, a theoretical work attempting to deconstruct the concept of ‘hygienic space’ in modernity.

Constantinos Economides
is an Industrial Designer focusing on topics of conceptual design. He has recently completed an MA in Industrial Design at the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in
London, after graduating from Frederick University in Cyprus. He has participated in several design competitions and exhibited in countries such as Italy, UK and China. Recent projects include "the rocking platforms” (www.myconstantcreation.com), that aim to provide the expansion or re-invention of products, by exploring and understanding their use and relationship with their users.

Ioanna Angelopoulou
is an architect (University of Thrace, Department of Architecture, Xanthi, 2006)and is a postgraduate student in the field "Design-Space-Culture" of N.T.U.A.(2007). She has worked for R-tech Architects where she participated in the design of several projects.As a member of an artistic team -Zoltart- she organised and participated in two exhibitions in Xanthi (2005-06) and in Urban Voids exhibition in Athens (2006).

Costandia Manthou
(01.04.83), is an architect (University of Thessaly, Department of Architecture, Volos, 2006). Has cooperated and participated in art exhibitions (Venice biennial, Athens biennial, etc), architectural workshops and competitions (UIA student competition, Istanbul, 2005, EASA 2007,etc). 2nd Award in the "Greek Design Awards". Publication in the book: Vyzoviti Sophia, "Supersurfaces", Pis Pub (2006). Recently exploring the new ways and meanings of handicraft. Working as an architect.

Eleni Spiridaki
is an architect - University of Thessaly, Department of Architecture-Volos, 2006. Since 2003 she has been working in several firms (Volos-Santorini-Athens) and has been involved in various projects and competitions for public buildings and installations. She has also cooperated with several artists. Her research negociates the notion of ground relief as generator of design processes, while attempting to identify body with gaze as well as dealing with existing mnemonic traces on the landscape. She lives and work in Athens.

Evi Sugara
is an architect (University of Thessaly, Department of Architecture ,Volos). She has participated in seminars, exhibitions and workshops that approach architecture and art practices. She has worked as an architect and assistant for the development of web projects. Most recent project "The Body and The Ruin-Transforming a building cell" elaborates the notion of "metaphor" within different design and art contexts.
(http://www.flickr.com/photos/7514586@N07/sets/72157600042742436/)

Nikos Tsimas
is an architect (Department of Architecture, University of Thessaly/2005) and a postgraduate student in the field "Design-Space-Culture" (NTUA/2006-). Special mention award in the international competition of ideas "Celebration of cities II" organized by UIA (2006). Award in the international competition "Living as tourist in Adrion" organized by UNIADRION (Ravenna, 2006). 2nd award in the essay competition organized by ISTAME and A.Tritsis foundation (2007). Working as designer since 2005. Special interest in the formation of marginal identities of spaces and humans. Recent research includes the exploration of uncanny architecture.

Ifigenia Dilaveraki, Antonis Kiourtsis, Katerina Koutsogianni, Haris Laspas, Antonella Nikolopoulou, Giannis Papagiannakis, Dimitris Spiropoulos and Vasso Damkou,
Thanos Karampatsos, Xristina Kotsilelou.

Campanas Workshop in Athens is in progress. Yiannis Arvanitis, Alexandra Chronaki, Eleni Theodorou and Christina Tsiragelou contributed in the first phase of the workshop.

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Albion Gallery, 16 Oct 2008 _ The Campanas in Athens

Next Workshop _ November 2008

May Workshop

March Workshop

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