NEW DELHI: A set of mannequins stand dramatically within a glass box with exaggerated drapes in nine hand-picked Jakob Schlaepfer fabric pieces. Conceptualised by Akshat Bhatt of Architecture Discipline in collaboration with fashion designer Amit Aggarwal, this installation titled Parade of Souls explores the idea of self-actualisation in the 21st century, creating a spatial construct that invites visitors to pause in a world fixated on fast-paced transitions.
Bhatt says, “The idea behind the installation arose from the need to express the questions of introspection and reflection spatially. In a 21st century, digital world fixated on fast-paced transitions through time, this ‘parade’ of mannequins explores the idea of self-actualisation; by juxtaposing human emotions in a spatial context. It intends to epitomise this experiential human journey and invoke a corporeal dialogue over a visual one.”
Through this pop-up, Swiss luxury fabric maker Jakob Schlaepfer has made inroads into the Indian market. The design team creates more than 1,200 new fabrics every year. The fabrics are conceived, tested and realised in St Gallen. Originally an embroidery company, it uses laser cutting, digital printing and state-of-the-art embroidery machines to create fashion and interior fabrics and accessories. “The fabrics selected for the installation are unusual in material, texture and form. Each of them represents different techniques and thereby emotions,” adds Bhatt, who conceptualised the whole idea with Harsh Nambiar.
Can these fabrics be used for building designs? “The installation and the thought behind it are brought to life with fabrics that are intimate and immediate works of architecture. They are not fabrics for attire but for interior and architecture application,” Bhatt adds. The installation tries to show an unfolding of events – visualisation, deliberation, and realisation – with the box becoming a performance space.
About the name, Bhatt says, “It is a reflection of the collective human march through days, months, and years, where one seldom gets the chance to stay static, and aims to generate a sort of the dynamism that provokes contemplation. It proffers itself to be more than just a representation of the textile brand’s oeuvre of work and crafts a series of layered experiences through the glass box that houses it, facilitating meaningful engagement with the visitors.”At: STIR Gallery, 2 North Drive, DLF Chattarpur Farms Till: April 30