“God, this is comfortable.”
I’ve just kicked my shoes off. Wiggling my toes, I am lying stretched out in a textile field surrounded by Raphael’s Cartoons. Design studio Bouroullec have taken over the Raphael room at the Victoria & Albert Museum for the whole of London Design Festival. The studio have filled the room with an installation they have called a textile field, a collaboration with Danish Kvadrat. The colours of the padded textile pieces have been chosen to correspond to the paintings on the wall. The Royal-owned Raphael paintings, once thought to be the wonders of their time, ironically begin to fade against the backdrop of the vibrant, woven textiles.
“Look at him! Baby bonanza!” My friend points to a mini design fan. There, in the midst of the field, a one year old is crawling, wind in his hair (well not quite, but almost), grin on his face, a never-ending field of softly padded, woven textiles flung before him. What could be better?
The duo behind Bouroullec, Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, have among other things, gotten into the habit of creating awe-inspiring chairs and furniture. This time they have created a well-deserved break for the design hungry. In the midst of viewing modern showrooms, newly won material and truth be told – a ton of copper lamps - the textile field serves as a reminder of the quiet and of simple beauty. Also, the importance of breathing in and just enjoying.
We lay there in the field for a good fifteen minutes, enjoying a break from running to and from venues, trying to see it all. The oval roof and the curved textile field made us feel like we were on a softly nestled boat. The big room’s dimmed lighting accompanied by the Raphael paintings seemed like a small haven. For the first time all day we didn't find ourselves discussing production, material or consumerism. It would seem that Bouroullec this time have created more of an atmosphere than an object.
As I put on my shoes again, I think for myself that while having a lie down is always nice - sitting up in a wonderfully constructed chair beats that in a less busy week. The textile field is a wonderful break, simple and understated, but it still leaves a bit to be desired, a bit more construction.
By Kristina Ketola Bore, MA Design Writing Criticism student at London College of Communication.
