Maquettes of everyday life
or how I am virtually unable to make things simple
How did we get here?
I began with the exploration of the reductive form and color of constructivism, a branch of the brutalist movement, which is starting to once again gain traction in popular design culture – perhaps as an early response to the trending tendencies toward maximalist darkness, moody gold embellishments and (at times) fabricated antiquity.
This endeavour was prompted by a request I had received, to formulate a set of designs that are “simpler, more easily integrated in contemporary everyday homes” – hence the decision to explore simpler and more geometric design avenues.
Not being able to justify a purely decorative capsule however, I had to find a guiding theme – “a reason”. My abstract and geometric designs had to be “a little more” that just shapes.
I began trying to pinpoint certain types of visual elements that would suit what I wanted to achieve, not yet focusing on the reason.
I went to geometric abstraction, got stuck on Polish avant garde, and passed by Russian suprematism (see Kazimir Malevich); I was looking to emulate the deconstructive and reductive aspect of these works – how much can you take away from something, stopping right before it is no longer the thing that is was? And how do you do it in a manner that does not leave the subject soulless?
Wallpaper makes a statement, and for many people, this can be intimidating. Many of us just aren’t accustomed to making a statement when it comes to our home design. And that’s fine becausae we all seek comfort in our living space. But the truth is: we’re all infinitely unique, and I believe that our home design should reflect this.
Further researching, I discovered the works of Alexandra Exter – a progressive Belorussian painter. Her art is visually striking, heavily geometric, and very clearly informed by the principles of constructivism.
Her stage design artworks are, however, nothing if not lively – colorful, but in a subdued way, dynamic, and story rich; very much in contrast to the works of her aforementioned contemporaries.
I knew in this stage of the process that I was neither simplifying things, nor circling back to my initial vision. But Exter’s “Maquettes de théâtre” were fascinating to me; the seamless connectivity between the clean geometry and the chaotic energy of her execution felt inspiring.
I decided to start combining the bits and bobs of what I had researched and start shaping them, in hopes of getting closer to the vision I knew I had, buried deep within my minds eye.
In particular, I was drawn to this artwork:
I was straying further and further away from the original intent – in essence, something that easily fits into everyday life.
I was indeed complicating things. And yet for however much I managed to simplify in shape and visual aspect, I managed to complicate in story.
What I ended up with, instead of something that easily fits into everyday life, is an odd representation of a simple life. I must have some sort of design-based dyslexia and an innate desire to over-complicate things.
But I digress.
I began sketching ideas based on the Exter artworks, playing with shapes and perspectives. I realized I wanted to go towards something fairly simplistic, with as few lines as possible, as to not take away from a main subject or idea.
Switching to digital, I further contoured my vision based on a guiding concept: clean yet lively geometric abstraction, with a subtle story and an eye-catching color palette.
I thought of the simplest forms and elements, perhaps not intentionally, in a childlike way. Something that is easy to identify, even in its most basic form – a simple house with a red roof, a blue sky, a round yellow sun.
I found that what I was ending up with, was indeed cleanly geometric, vibrant, cheery in a way – yet it all had an underlying eerie emptiness; almost surreal in nature. It was a seemingly theatrical interpretation of “life”.
It started to remind me of something I had seen before.
A (not so) random interpretation that sprung up in my mind – but as random as it seemed, I felt it could be an interesting way to tie up the final aspects of this journey; the story I was trying to inject into the designs.
I felt I could make sense of it, so I leaned into it.
The way everything seemed fabricated – like a movie set. The innocence, the blissfulness, the subtle eeriness.
It was a reference to a film that I initially deemed too far removed from where we started this exploration – but which I realized had seamlessly inserted itself, and made sense of my “vision”.
The dreamy atmosphere, plain bright colors, and motifs of “everyday life” made me think of this main character’s naïveté and unawareness, as his life presented itself in a series of serene vignettes. His life happened to him and around him, and would’ve continued to do so had he not broken his own story’s fourth wall.
A complex reality hidden in plain sight, behind a wall of meticulously calculated, yet unassuming stage props.
Good morning, and in case I don’t see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!
Setting the stage. A perfect life.
My fictional world was starting to take shape.
I wanted the designs to be “flat” – but not dead. I gave them a canvas painting look and feel in order to bring them to life and further cement the aesthetic I was now going for – a gently surreal, fabricated reality; think of a movie set made of building blocks or Lego bricks.
I gave some of the compositions further contrast (not just through color) by adding a mix of flat and three-dimensional elements – in the spirit of the constructivist geometry that stands at the roots of the capsule.
Enter the characters. The calm before the storm.
Deeper character exploration. Painting the curious inner child.
I wanted things to be contradictory – to have both the sense of wonder and curiosity and that of blissful escapism. Maybe you’re wondering what’s behind that door and further building the foundations of this surreal place. Maybe you’re taking it at face value and enjoying it’s strange calmness.
In the end, despite having a fairly simple and straightforward starting point, I think this capsule ended up being about blissfulness and the desire to preserve a gentle, child-like wonder in a reality full of sharp edges.
As is the case for many things in life – if you look for meaning, you will find it. If not, you can always fabricate it.
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