'Care Instructions' could be thought of as the relationship between an object and its owner—anything from ensuring that a white sofa remains pristine to curing insomnia in a lounge chair. The design and architecture studio ATRA demonstrates both (and more) in Paris this week, during an exhibition called CARE INSTRUCTIONS.
Based in Mexico, ATRA started producing furniture in 2014, but Europeans are just starting to discover the ultra luxurious designs by the company's Swedish-Mexican founder, Alexander Díaz Andersson. Neofuturist seating, tables, and lamps feature lines inspired by nature, and noble materials such as onyx, travertine, aged brass, and alpaca. Everything is made by over 100 master artisans in an atelier in Mexico City.
The most awe-inspiring piece on show is a black, L-shaped "Beluga" sectional sofa with impressive proportions, 4.80 m long on one side and 4.15 m on the other, made to fit the contours of a client's Malibu house. Low-slung and deep, it is covered in baby-soft Sandra Jordan alpaca bouclé.
A smaller Beluga sofa is protected by a thin transparent silicone cover called SKIN. Díaz Andersson explains, 'This was my partner Jeremiah [Joseph]'s idea—he grew up in a place where his grandmother wrapped furniture in plastic. It's playing off the idea of encapsulating a piece of furniture while still using it.' Clients can remove the cover to expose the white alpaca velvet underneath, or else choose to keep it wrapped and 'showcase how neurotic you are'.
Neuroscience must be on Díaz Andersson's mind. In a darkened side room, a biohacking chair, the Morphus, sits alone, the result of work he is doing with American wellness entrepreneur Jonathan Congdon. Pulse electromagnetic frequencies with different wavelengths interact with the body, inducing deep meditative states. 'The meditation chair is one of the projects I'm extremely proud about,' says the designer. 'I think this chair is going to become a huge tool for many things.'
And because the experience of sitting in a stylish chair can only be enhanced by looking at interesting artworks, CARE INSTRUCTIONS includes a number of pieces from Jeremiah Joseph's personal art collection, such as a conceptual snowball by David Hammons, a cast concrete "Sportscar" by Jason Rhoades, and a minimalist textile work by Andreas Díaz Andersson, Alexander's brother.
Friends and family flew in from Mexico to attend the opening, including Andreas, as well as Alexander's mother, who runs the workshop. Also present was Gabriella Kuti, Alexander's partner in business and life, who is four months pregnant. That didn't stop the couple from greeting guests at the after-party into the wee hours of the morning, smiling graciously, no care instructions necessary.
A conversation with Alexander Díaz Andersson and Gabriella Kuti
Wallpaper*: Alexander, your background is Swedish and Mexican, how does that impact your approach?
Alexander Díaz Andersson: I think it's a mix. I think we're a minimal maximalist brand because we use very rich materials. And the lines are unobtrusive. I like things when they are organised and there's like a certain symmetry and order. I'm very classic in that sense. I take a lot of inspiration from nature, like for our collection called the Pebble table. I love hiking. I think of rivers or look at the trees, and that gives me a lot of information about shapes and how they can be transmuted into products.
W*: How do the two of you work together?
Gabriella Kuti: I lead the interior design side of the company. ATRA started off as a furniture design company, then we started the architecture side about four or five years ago with a client that believed in us, for a house in Malibu. The client became our mentor and greatest supporter. Now architecture shapes our furniture collection, and vice versa.
W* So it's an ongoing conversation.
GK: We are very well known for our pieces being customisable, as long as the design doesn't get sacrificed.
ADA: Sometimes when we do bespoke, we like the proportions of the design, and then it ends up becoming a product. Every year our objects evolve. I take a lot of inspiration from car designs, like Porsche—it's always the same Porsche, but it's been evolving over time, attaining the same language, but evolved.
W*: What's the meaning of the collection name, "Future Relics"?
ADA: The collection is the continuation of a narrative we created three years ago for Design Miami named Earth Year 2100. So it's the idea of design today and how it's going to age, how it's going to interact 100 years from now. Every time we do objects, furniture, and architecture, we think about the future—like will they be passed down, will they still work, and how do we create pieces that evolve over time. Aging with beauty. It's a very wabi-sabi or Taoist approach.
“CARE INSTRUCTIONS” runs until 27 October at 18 bis Rue d’Anjou, 75008 Paris atraform.com
