PORTFOLIO – KAISA SÖÖT – 2018
SNAKE-TABLE 2017 co-author: Koit Randmäe materials: maple branches, particleboard, paint We were asked to design and build display structures for the graphic design exhibition “Signals from Periphery“ curated by Elisabeth Klement and Laura Pappa in Tallinn Arthall. The only rule we set for ourselves was to use local materials and/or techniques. As a result we collected branches from a forest that needed thinning. The shape of the table resembled the letter “S”.
FURNITURE FOR PIRE 2017 materials: plaster, plasterboard, timber beams Artist Pire Sova asked me to design and build a table, a wall and two chairs for her work “ilumaailm.xyz”. It was important she could apply stickers with flower motives on the furniture. I used plasterboard – a “standard” material that surrounds us daily – as her work addresses the issues of beauty norms.
EKKM CAFE 2017 co-author: Julia Retz materials: recycled particleboard, plywood, paint We were asked to rethink and build new furniture for the Estonian Contemporary Art Museum’s café. Since the space has a dual use – a café during the day and a club at night – the furniture had to be flexible, easy to reorganize and keep clean. The stools and tables are made from discarded Soviet furniture, collected from various apartments all around Tallinn.
SUVI CHAIR 2015 co-author: Julia Retz producer: hand-made together with local artisans Carlos and Lucas measurements: 840 x 500 x 600 materials: bamboo, resin, eucalyptus, recycled toothpaste tube board Suvi Chair was commissioned by a school in Agudos, a village in the countryside of the state of SĂŁo Paulo, Brazil. The school was built from local materials like rammed earth, wood and bamboo. We were asked to follow the same approach. The design process started by learning the traditional bamboo furniture techniques and was followed by experimenting with bamboo in a workshop we set up in situ. The aim was to come up with a simple and stackable bamboo chair. We used recycled toothpaste tube board for the seat of the chair. This is an ecological, strong and cold material, suitable for the tropical climate. We were involved in the whole production process from harvesting bamboo until the execution of 80 chairs.
CASA DO CHORO 2016 co-author: Julia Retz producer: Clement Móveis materials: plywood, jequitiba wood We were asked by Instituto Casa do Choro, a music institute and school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to design furniture for their newly renovated three-storey building. Our intention was to make furniture that could help the cold and impersonal classrooms to become more warm and friendly. We decided to use wood as the main material and play with round shapes. Casa do Choro chair is a continuation of the Suvi Chair, being adjusted to the producer, new materials and needs of the musicians. An important aspect was to offer opportunities for people to readjust the space with ease according to their needs, so that choro gatherings could spontaneously be formed (choro is often played in circles called “rodas de choro”).
APARTMENT FOR A MUSICIAN 2014 co-author: Julia Retz materials: plywood Interior design and furniture for an apartment in the centre of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. All the furniture was built by us on the floor of that apartment, using a circular saw and a screwdriver.
VOOR TRUUS 2013 materials: painted MDF, recycled timber My graduation work from the Gerrit Rietveld Academie. A site-specific installation in the girls toilet of the academy. The work reflected the built legacy of Gerrit Rietveld.
VITRINE 2018 material: MDF, plywood, glass, plexiglas, mirror, lights A vitrine I designed and made for Marge Monko solo exhibition “Stones Against Diamonds, Diamonds Against Stones� in Tallinn City Galley. The shape of the display resembles a distorted diamond, the colour aims to look like Rose Gold tone of iPhone.