German designer Julia Lohmann has brought a global issue to the fore with and awesomely weird and wonderful pavillion. Showcased at the World Economic Forum in Davos, ‘Hidaka Ohmu’ is a small thought-inducing creation composed of stretched seaweed.
Lohmann’s Department of Seaweed explores the design potential of the plentiful, sustainable, and often overlooked material. The kelp is treated to maintain its original properties, and also make it malleable and flexible so it can be manipulated and utilised like leather.
The multi-sensory marvel takes advantage of the semi-translucent material, stretching it over rattan and allowing for light variations in the environment to impact its appearance. The pavillion has been created in an organic shape, with curves and nodules protruding from the sides and roof and it sits by a large window, offering views of the snowy outdoors.
Lohmann is a fierce advocate for the use of seaweed, having previously created ‘Oki Naganode’ for the V&A, a similar installation made from Japanese Naga Kombu, as well as laser-cut lampshades, and other curious creations. The designer’s focus is for “design” to no longer simply focus on creation, but instead to direct energy towards developing creative and sustainable solutions. The pavillion is just one step forward in demonstrating what can be done to help change perception.
Julia Lohmann
Department of Seaweed
A new post by Hanna Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, April 2020.