Kristine Mandsberg — Blob no. 1 - 9
ABOUT THE PROJECT:
Blob by Danish textile designer and artist Kristine Mandsberg consists of a series of nine studies into the fluidity and shape of organic textile forms. Set against matching PVC foam boards, the nine works feature various organic configurations and colours, translating the concept of a physical squeeze into a static ornament. Built up from foam underlay with a nylon jersey covering, each piece is finished with a ‘flocking’ technique that creates a velvet like appearance and texture. The unique combination of materials and techniques instinctively promotes discovery and physical interaction between the audience and the work, using sensuous aesthetic triggers that encourage a deeper physical connection.
Material and dimensions:
Flock fibre, foam, nylon jersey, PVC foam board.
30 x 42 x 4 – 8cm each.
Year:
2022
PHOTOGRAPHY BY:
Anders Sune Berg
VIDEOGRAPHY BY:
Benjamin Lund
LONG DESCRIPTION:
The creation of Blob forms part of Kristine Mandsberg’s larger exploration into the impact that shape, surface treatment, material and colour has in promoting physical contact between humans, spatial environments and objects. Under the title ‘Please Touch’, this body of work encourages physicality through actions including wearing, shaking, touching, squeezing, lifting or changing of objects – essentially a process of play. Blob in particular focuses on the act of squeezing – accentuated through nine organic compositions that bulge and create internal friction within a standard rectangular frame. Mandsberg has first utilised the aesthetic properties of foam, nylon jersey and flock fibre to draw in the users eye – soft, tangible forms with the visual suggestion of change when physically approached. Scaled down into smaller rectangular configurations, the series acts as a mirroring of the process of squeezing yourself or a loved one – broaching the decreased physical contact within contemporary society today. Viewed by Mandsberg as a testing ground for larger objects and installations, the principles of Blob can be expanded to entire environments that further promote social interaction by activating all of the senses.
DESIGNER BIO:
Kristine Mandsberg
Textile Designer & Artist, born 1983.
Rather than focusing on any one material or medium, the work of textile designer and artist Kristine Mandsberg tackles each project through an explorative and experimental approach to form and materiality. From her studio in Copenhagen’s Nørrebro district, experiments into materials and surfaces come together through spatial decorations, collectible objects, installations and collaborations with industry that champion colour, pattern and texture. The playful nature in which she creates is imbued into each space and object, encouraging the user or audience to touch and feel the work – promoting a sense of physicality within an increasingly digital world. This dynamism of interaction is often the defining element that completes her projects, with modularity and changeable components featured throughout her body of work. Whilst colourful and loud in visual expression, her complex forms are often aesthetically simple in execution – intuitive forms that further promote interaction and a sense of openness.
EDUCATION:
2008: MA, Printed Textile, Royal College of Art, London, United Kingdom.
2006: Textile, Kolding Design School, Kolding, Denmark.
GRANTS AND HONOURS:
2022: Working Grant, The Danish Arts Foundation, Denmark.
2021: Project Grant, The Danish Arts Foundation, Denmark.
2021: Project Grant, Denmark’s Nationalbanks Jubilæumsfond of 1968, Denmark.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:
2021: Group Exhibition, Radical Craft 3, Direktorenhaus, Berlin, Germany.
2021: Group Exhibition, Space Shape Surface Structure, Vaeg Gallery, Aalborg, Denmark.
2020: Group Exhibition, Body no 1, 2 & 3, Fan Out, Copenhagen, Denmark.
2019: Three of a Kind, The Biennale for Craft and Design, Copenhagen, Denmark.
2018: Solo Exhibition, Please Touch, Officinet, Copenhagen, Denmark.
2018: Solo Exhibition, Landscape, Nicolai Cultural Centre, Kolding, Denmark.
Selected Commissions:
2022 Site-specific permanent installation,Transparency, Colour & Light, Nicolai Cultural Centre, Kolding, Denmark.
2021 Flock Couch, Collaboration with Tableau for Post.Service, Copenhagen, Denmark.
2019 Site specific permanent installation, Shape & Colour, The Bronze Hall, Kolding, Denmark.
2017 Temporary Installation. Moving Stripes, Byens Hegn, Town Hall Square, Copenhagen, Denmark.
WEBSITE:
INSTAGRAM: