Curtain Call | Dreams woven into Space
New York, Westbeth Artist Housing / 2022
Just like the opening and closing of car windows blasting loud Hip Hop beats, and therewith altering the space of New York city’s streets scape; How can fabrics woven into space alter the experience and its programming?
FABRICS ALTERING THE SPACE:
An exploration of how 5 types of different materiality of curtains can be woven into the vast space at Westbeth Artist Housing in Meatpaking district and offer a new, altered experience:
An exploration of how 5 types of different materiality of curtains can be woven into the vast space at Westbeth Artist Housing in Meatpaking district and offer a new, altered experience:
1. (closed) meditation space
2. (semi-open) art exhibition space,
3. (open) intimate music performance space.
2. (semi-open) art exhibition space,
3. (open) intimate music performance space.
URBAN PHENOMENA:
CITY STREETS FUNCTION AS STAGE FOR SOUND EXPERIENCED IN DRIVING CARS.
Cars that blast hip hop, the streets and the beats, the veins and authenticity of New York.
An experience performed in a duality: Privately, within a driving capsule, that feels safe, home, self.Publicly as a temporary, disrupting sound, an urban phenomena that is connecting spatially and mentally. Passing by of temporary moments that enable one to catapult us into another sphere. Music triggers emotions, memories of different places and faces. The disrupting moments of sounds flowing through the streets like rivers
, trigger glitches of dreams and magical sparks, like clouds hit by the light. A futuristic feel, that lets us discover the imaginary within another sphere. A sphere that feels light, magical, safe and wants us to move and fly.
CITY STREETS FUNCTION AS STAGE FOR SOUND EXPERIENCED IN DRIVING CARS.
Cars that blast hip hop, the streets and the beats, the veins and authenticity of New York.
An experience performed in a duality: Privately, within a driving capsule, that feels safe, home, self.Publicly as a temporary, disrupting sound, an urban phenomena that is connecting spatially and mentally. Passing by of temporary moments that enable one to catapult us into another sphere. Music triggers emotions, memories of different places and faces. The disrupting moments of sounds flowing through the streets like rivers
, trigger glitches of dreams and magical sparks, like clouds hit by the light. A futuristic feel, that lets us discover the imaginary within another sphere. A sphere that feels light, magical, safe and wants us to move and fly.
Through opening and closing mechanism of curtains woven throughout space, the site adapts from a communal open space for concerts, to semi-closed capsule moments that invite into the void; a meditative space, contemplative, intimate. Speculative fiction in video installations on curtains and ceilings invite to other realms, also to be explored with layers of VR. Another, abstract projection of color, form and sound invites to the liminal.
Annabelle’s aim: To occupy both physical and digital realms to highlight concerns of appearance and disappearance, identity and connection, permanence and evanesence. We naturally wonder “What is behind that curtain”, this time, the curtains themselves tell stories. Dreams woven into structures. Programmed and conceptualized by me, executed as a community within the Westbeth artist housing project.
Annabelle’s aim: To occupy both physical and digital realms to highlight concerns of appearance and disappearance, identity and connection, permanence and evanesence. We naturally wonder “What is behind that curtain”, this time, the curtains themselves tell stories. Dreams woven into structures. Programmed and conceptualized by me, executed as a community within the Westbeth artist housing project.
“Forecast studies for 2024, show that 360-degree drapes are emerging as interior designers transform everyday spaces into inviting sanctuaries. This will remain important for upcoming seasons, as the focus on and need for restorative softness influences designs and applications. Soft-walls and partitions cater to consumer’s ever-changing flexible living needs and double as energy-saving solutions in either warming, cooling or acoustic altering space.”
“Curtains woven into space morph to dynamic dividers for the alteration of the space and program. The array of different materials installed on a site-specific, parallel rail system, allows for layered looks that offer different functionalities and add surprise on a large scale. Especially the metallic survival foil weavings allow for dramatic draping. Pleats and folded drapes that make for decorative, reflective displays and backdrops.”
“Layered curtains as dynamic dividers. The semi-open floor plan invites for both functional and expressive partitions within a cultural, commercial setting. With their tactility and interactivity, textiles have a healing aspect and represent an attractive alternative to traditionally hard partition panels, giving the user flexibility when splitting spaces and to easily build privacy on a larger scale. Sound-blocking fabrics allow for intimate areas that allow to unwind. Draped corridors encourage a sense of transparency to develop an inviting soothing sanctuary, whereas the site-specific track system allows for a dynamic, fluid spatial programming.”
Date: 2022
Design and Concept for Wesbeth Artist Housing
Category: Things I imagine to build | Cultural Performance Space
Location: Meatpaking District, New York, USA