Formation of stool: collaboration with the House of Artisans (Abu Dhabi) for the London Design Biennale

Formation of a stool in collaboration with Milk Train, for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi. A project for the London Design Biennale 2023. 

“WHAT AN HONOUR  to work with Milk Train for the London Design Biennale and for such a prestigious client as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi. The project – for the shape and the construction process of the stools – has captured us from the very beginning. We worked together with the designer on their engineering and we are extremely proud of the result” (Marianna Devoto, CCO and CMO)

Devoto Design at the Somerset House

At the London Design Biennale 2023 inside the renowned neoclassical Somerset House building – one of the international benchmark for visual arts and famous venue for concerts and shows too – Milk Train conceived an exhibition set with 3 screens for projecting pictures. In the middle of the room that hosts this exhibition there are 8 wooden swivel stools fixed onto a raised floor.

“THE MAIN TOPIC of the exhibition is the production of the Al Sadu, a kind of fabric made from raw sheep wool. Through the centuries the nomads of the desert have developed some specific tools to speed up its production. These stools take cues from the spindle that is used to obtain the raw wool threads the Al Sadu is made of. Our stools are meant to reproduce the shape of this spindle..” (Giampiero Sanguigni, Milk Train)

Creation of a spindle-like swivel stool

The stools Devoto Design made were designed by Milk Train to resemble the spindle as much as possible. There are three different kinds of stools, but they are all made of:

• A SEAT IN SOLID ZEBRA WOOD 
• A METAL LEG veneered in the same wood essence

To make them look like spindles, though, it was necessary to conceal the low part of the leg. How? We used a raised floor that simply incorporates the leg of the stools.

In this way what visitors see is 8 spindle-shaped stools lodged into the floor.

WHAT’S MORE: all the stools were worked with our CNC machines for whats concerns the seat. It is made of wooden disks that we assembled and then lodged onto the metal leg.

Theme Medal 2023 for Milk Train

With this project Milk Train was awarded the Theme Medal 2023 for for the most inspiring interpretation of the theme 2023, congratulations!

**

The exhibition will take place from the 1st to the 25th June.

For more information, please visit the official London Design Biennale website

**

It is not the first project by Milk Train and Devoto Design. Check out this article about the Golden Jubilee exhibition, a double event that took place at the same time in the USA and the UAE: