By Rasmus Bøgeskov
People from all over the world come to explore the works of Danish design pioneers at the Trapholt Museum, which holds a particularly large collection of around 500 chairs. From the 5th to the 12th of May, another 13 stools could be explored at the museum, all of which were produced in cooperation between Danish and Egyptian designers and manufacturers.
The presentation ‘Bilingual Design’ at Trapholt was – so far – the culmination of a project launched by the Danish-Egyptian Dialogue Initiative in 2018. This was the third edition of the design dialogue with a new batch of young designers but the same manufacturer from the Egyptian furniture hub Damietta city.
“The outcome of the project keeps developing further and further. We began with a small exhibition in our showroom in Egypt, but in the latest edition we have been displayed in first the National Museum for Egyptian Civilisation in Cairo and how here in Trapholt. This is proof that the quality of what we produce is improving quickly and is gaining recognition,” says Amr Orensa, Design Manager at Pinocchio Furniture.
The stools were designed by 21 students from the Royal Danish Academy and three young Egyptian designers who met up in Egypt in November 2021. In cooperation with the experienced artisans from Pinocchio Factory they produced 13 unique stools that each fuse ancient Egyptian traditions with modern Danish design principles.
In December, the stools were exhibited at the newly inaugurated National Museum for Egyptian Civilisation in Cairo. When the director of the Trapholt museum was subsequently offered to host the stools in Denmark, she did not hesitate.
“We couldn’t possibly say no to having this presentation. We love it when we see people working with creativity in a new way,” says Karen Grøn, the director of Trapholt Museum of modern art, craft and design in the city of Kolding.
At the opening of the weeklong presentation, the young designers told stories of how they had found inspiration in ancient Egyptian furniture design and architecture. Some had paid attention to details such as the shape of ancient headrests, the animal legs on pharaonic chairs, or the wrappings of the mummies, while others had been fascinated by the larger structures of old temples, monuments, and ships.
“It is so interesting to see what happens when you send Danish students to Egypt. The outcome is incredibly diverse because all the designers get inspired in different ways and find their own take on the history and the traditions. When I see this, it becomes clear to me that we ought to send all students out to meet something foreign and challenge them to make use of it. It is when you do this, that you get something new and original,” Karen Grøn adds.
For the Egyptian designers and producers, the presentation is a rare opportunity to display their work abroad.
“We have never had Egyptian designed furniture shown outside the country in a non-commercial space. It is a very good step forward for us to have it displayed at such a beautiful place and in a country that is famous for its furniture design. I believe it can be a turning point for us, and lead us to something bigger,” Amr Orensa says.
The three Egyptian designers had been selected from a pool of 28 applicants. They enjoyed the feedback from the visitors to the opening of the presentation at Trapholt.
“I have only had very positive responses so far,” says Zahraa Alshafeei, but before she could complete the sentence a woman interrupted her to say: “What a beautiful chair you have made.”
“You see what I mean? The reception has been great. It was amazing to have our stools displayed in Egypt in our new museum, and now here in this significant museum in Denmark. It is such an honour,” she continued.
Another Egyptian designer, Mohamed Mamdouh El-Haddad, was particularly happy that the visitors who came to the presentation’s opening reception understood his design vision. He had made a stool that drew its inspiration from the symbols of the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in ancient times.
“The unification of Egypt was essential for the creation of a civilisation, and I’m very pleased that the visitors to the presentation here understood the concept behind my stool and felt that it expressed unity and communication between the different parts,” Mohamed Mamdouh El-Haddad explains.
The Egyptian designer said that working alongside Danish students and with guidance from Danish professors has had a profound impact on him.
“I benefited greatly from the exchange of ideas and being exposed to the Danish design tradition which is very different to ours. Those five days I spent with the Danes at the factory helped me developed me as much as I otherwise would have developed in one or two years of normal work,” he asserts.
For the professors at the Royal Danish Academy, it is an ambitious and demanding project to send their masters students to Egypt to work in a factory. But they want to do it again.
“We learn a lot each time. We are not just doing the same thing over and over again. Each time we change the focus a bit to enhance the project and get a better result. For sure this time was the best yet. I’m very happy with this presentation. And that is why we want to do it yet again, and hopefully we will get even better,” Nicolai de Gier, professor at the Royal Danish Academy, concludes.
This project was managed by DEDI’s Project Officer Marwa Seoudi.
