Eleven designers including Tomás Alonso, Philippe Malouin and Study O Portable took the fictional character of a lady called Vera as their muse and presented the results in a west London basement during the London Design Festival.
Above: Veralyn Fragrance by Emmanuel Philip
Called Vera, Chapter One, the project was curated by Kirsty Minns and Érika Muller (KM and ÉM) and asked each participant to respond to one photograph of Vera, taken from a set discovered at a junk shop in the seaside town of Brighton.
The eclectic presentation included shoes with Corian heels, bottles of scent inspired by a visit to the sea and wallpaper depicting Vera's dreams.
Above: Conch Shells by Loris & Livia
See all our stories about the London Design Festival here.
Photography is by Benedict Morgan.
Above: Play It Louder by Study O Portable
Here are some more details from KM and ÉM:
Vera, Chapter One is a multi-disciplinary exhibition orchestrated by KM and ÉM as the first part of an on-going project evolving around a fictional character.
Above: Play It Louder by Study O Portable
The first chapter has been exclusively launched during the London Design Festival in September 2011.
Exploring a literacy approach to design, this exhibition showcases an eclectic body of work, including product design, illustration, graphics and olfactive design, by some emerging international talent.
Above: Collection C by Eelko Moorer
Vera is a fictional character based on a series of photographs from a girl’s family found a few years ago in a second hand shop in Brighton.
A group of artists & designers have been commissioned to respond to one image from the series in order to create the first chapter of Vera’s fictive and collaborative biography.
Above: 1:4 by Philippe Malouin
Vera’s material and sensorial world is brought into reality through this speculative body of work.
The exhibition room becomes her intimate space into which the visitor is invited to discover an original series of suppositional artefacts.
Above: Vera's Dream by Arlette Ess
The works featured in this publication are the different responses from the commissioned artists and designers to a brief they were given in July 2010.
This brief is presented below to give you a deeper understanding of the thinking and working process behind this project.
Above: Strap Lamp by Camille Blin
‘There are thirty one photos of Vera in total, ten of them will be released for this first chapter. You are offered to choose one picture from the series to work from.
This image is the beginning of your narration. The work you will produce is a direct continuity of this photo and it will be one of the stories contributing to Vera’s fictional and collaborative biography.
Above: Vera's Vase by José Levy
You are free to respond to this image as you wish. Your answer might be realistic or fantasied, dramatic or comical, profound or superficial, emotional or practical – the tone is yours.
Your story can be rooted in the photo’s temporality but could also be anticipating or succeeding it.
Above: Secret Alphabet by Roma Levin
You can pick any detail from the image to build your own story – a character, a printed pattern, an object, a colour range, or any element which seems relevant to you.
What we think should be vital in the approach of your work is to keep Vera at the heart of the narration.
Above: Her Scarf by Malika Favre
We might sound mystical when saying this, but we believe that the work should almost be incarnating Vera rather than interpreting her.
Above: Aintree by Tomás Alonso
That it isn’t about telling what we think about her rather than making her come true.
Above: Aintree by Tomás Alonso
We wish you the best for this adventure. We hope that Vera will inspire you. She is now your muse.’ KM & ÉM