Toelichting door Studio Ossidiana - During the quarantine, my partner Alessandra and I found ourselves working from our studio in Rotterdam, without the team we had been collaborating with for the past few years, with the only company of our parrot Coco, a two years old Amazona Oratrix from Rijswijk. During the months of March, April and May, we had more time than ever to spend with him, as he enjoyed flying freely in the studio during work hours, perching on our chairs, and mischievously playing with our project models, probably picturing himself as a feathered dinosaur, attacking miniature buildings while we were distracted.
For the past two years, we had been engaged on a research project on mediative objects, spaces and tools such as birdcages, fences, perches, leashes, used to “mediate” the encounter between humans and other animals. Some of this work has been exhibited at Het Nieuwe Instituut last year, in our exhibition called “Animal Encounters”, followed by a show at the Van Eyck Academie last March, which will be further developed as an installation in the Arsenale for the upcoming Venice Biennale. In March, with new constraints imposed by the pandemic and the forced isolation, we began to sketch and build in our studio wooden prototypes for furniture for our parrot and a human.
Using simple profiles of Douglas Fir, which we usually use to build formwork for cast elements, and left over plywood boards, we built four pieces, hybrids between perches and benches, chairs and bird feeders. All, despite the humble provenance of their raw material, are variations on traditional Windsor furniture, using exposed wedge joints, and playing on the style’s infinite variations and simple detailing, rethought in order to accommodate a Parrot, along with his Human companion.
As design commissions slowed their pace during the lockdown, while interviews and online workshops became more frequent, pictures of this project were included in publications about our Studio, from the press release for the upcoming Istanbul biennial, to Elle Decor and Dezeen, often starring Coco, who, unaware of his minor celebrity status, continues to bite his way through our work.
Throne for Humans and Birds: 50cmx50x220
Part perch, part chair, part bird, the Throne is designed to accommodate a parrot on its tallest “branches”, while hosting his featherless companion below.
Bird Portal: 40cmx60x270
A tall frame, part perch, part scarecrow, to be “dress up” like a bird while hanging clothes, under the gaze of the parrot.
Bench for humans and Birds: 60cmx220x100
A variation on a Windsor style bench, designed to accommodate a human and a parrot, along with space for play, and bowls for food and water.
Side Table for Humans and Birds: 55cmx55x80
A side table, where to empty one’s pocket at the end of the day, or leave a book by the bed, providing new exciting objects to be discovered by the bird’s beak and claws.
