Habitare’s new themed exhibition, designed by Studio Plenty, to highlight the joy of doing things together and to offer surprises and uplifting experiences
Habitare, Finland’s leading furniture, design and interior decoration event, will introduce a new exhibition at the autumn show, in keeping with the event’s 2023 theme of Together. The exhibition will be designed by Anna Pirkola and Kirsikka Simberg of Studio Plenty, who are also behind the Habitare theme. Visitors will be treated to joy, beauty, surprises and uplifting experiences to appeal to all the senses. Habitare will be held at the Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre, from 13 to 17 September 2023.
Realised in collaboration with Studio Plenty, the new exhibition will introduce a new kind of space and new layers to Finland’s largest design event. The designers of the exhibition, Anna Pirkola and Kirsikka Simberg, want to create an exhibition experience that appeals to fair visitors and evokes emotions.
“To counterbalance the political theme, which also includes some heavy topics, we want to create something that is light and joyful, to bring people joy and inspiration, and to excite them. The idea is that there could be visually dissimilar spaces inside the exhibition space so that you cannot see everything at once, but the whole appears surprising and interesting. At its best, the exhibition evokes ideas: for some, it can be a refuge, while for others, it can be a source of inspiration or a place where they can discover new materials and ways of using them”, say Pirkola and Simberg, describing the starting points of the design.
The exhibition reflects the Habitare 2023 theme of Together, which explores the contrasts of our time and emphasises the power and importance of doing things together in challenging times. Like the theme, the exhibition highlights the changing world and the fact that we must together consider and create new perspectives on consumption and living.
“With the abundant fair offering, visitors might enjoy the exhibition as a balancing and calming element. We want to create our own, softer approach, including a matching soundscape, with the exhibition space dampening the sounds of the surrounding fair”, say Pirkola and Simberg.
The design of the exhibition began with a peek into the ideas folders of Pirkola and Simberg. These featured beautiful fabrics and architectural elements, which provided a basis for the exhibition. Consideration is also given to how the materials used in the exhibition will continue their lives after Habitare and how they will ultimately be disposed of.
“Habitare’s new exhibition concept better supports our annually changing theme. We hope that the exhibition will open up the theme’s message to visitors, while simultaneously offering space for thought and inspiration. Our themes often cover major social phenomena from many different perspectives. It will be really interesting to see how Studio Plenty converts the ideas it has conceived into visual form”, says the creative director of Habitare, Laura Sarvilinna.
More information:
Laura Sarvilinna, Creative Director, laura.sarvilinna@messukeskus.com
Pia Sievinen, Communications Specialist, pia.sievinen@messukeskus.com
Habitare, the largest furniture, design and interior decoration event in Finland, will be held at Messukeskus in Helsinki, from 13 to 17 September 2023. Habitare offers experiences and ideas on interior decoration, and on the functioning and look of homes and other spaces. Habitare highlights the ideas and works by a new generation of designers, and sparks discussion. | www.habitare.fi | @HabitareFair | facebook.com/habitare | #habitare2023
