Designers in Residence in Pforzheim 2021

Artist list

Marina Aleksashina, Naama Levite, Caio Mahin

Designers in Residence- scholarship holders:
Marina Aleksashina, Fashion design, Russia​. Project: Playground Hazards.
Marina's project deals with the social pressure that weighs on one in the phase of growing up and in the search for one's own identity, and the feeling that all roles in society have already been assigned. The objects, which were built on the principle of a large plush toy - the first things through which a child learns about the world and its rules are similar to an airbag and interact with the human body. A person in these objects begins to feel his body differently, he bends unnaturally and feels the weight of the toy. The main idea was to create a kit for adults that would bring back the feelings of childhood in The installation, which is an integral part of the project.

Naama Levite,  Jewelry design, Israel\ NY. Project: Matter to Dust.
Naama's way of work is reactive - she observes, documents, and collects. Looking for moments and patterns from which she can draw. In this act of displacement, she takes things out of their “natural” environment - the documentation of spaces is framed from her perspective and thus torn out of context. Parts and materials that she collects are dismantled and reassembled in relation to materials from other locations. she uses forms that imply a utilitarian purpose and suggests events or a ritual. The sandpit is a liminal environment, a poetic reference to the game and the sublime. Bit by bit she's building a place, a new terrain with several places and interactions at once.

Caio Mahin, Jewelry design, ​Brazilian based in Lisbon. Project: The Boy Who Wanted To Get His Ears Pierced.
Most of his works are based on childhood trauma, so of course elements from this period appear: puppet parts are combined with primitive shapes, humorous elements, and organic materials to deal with complex topics. his works are teeming with human-like forms that often question duality: sex and naivety, male and female, cute and angry, and so on.
Another element from childhood that affected his work is fairy tales, as cultural themes like racism and sexism are often based on fairy tales. his goal is to open a politicized look at these stories by showing how they affect adult behavior, but also to overcome and twist narratives that often exclude non-normative bodies or turn them into obscure ones Way represents. In doing so, German folk tales have proven to be a great contribution to my canon, as have old toys, the mechanisms of which create clear narratives.

More information at www.emma-pf.de

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