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Events
PRADA FRAMES
On Forest
A Symposium curated by Formafantasma
Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense, Milan
June 6th - 8th, 2022


Running in parallel to Milan’s Salone del Mobile, Prada Frames is a multidisciplinary symposium that delves into the complex relationship between the natural environment and design. The program is curated by Formafantasma, a research and design studio based in Milan and Rotterdam.
In line with the progressive and increasingly significant relationship between environmental studies and all fields of knowledge and culture, Prada Frames brings together the valuable contribution of scholars and professionals, such as scientists, architects, designers, artists, activists, anthropologists, and law experts.

SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM

Monday 6 June 2022

SESSION 1 - CONTEXTUALIZING
Session 1 introduces the forest as a living being and the camera as a mediator, in the understanding of plants as sentient beings. The session also highlights how architectural knowledge can be applied as a forensic tool.  
Speakers:
SOPHIE CHAO 
TERESA CASTRO 
EYAL WEIZMAN with REBECCA LEWIN

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SESSION 2 - NARRATING
Session 2 displays an historical overview of the relationship between humans, forests, and timber, highlighting local models of production and care. The session also presents the complexities of narrating the climate crisis.
Speakers:
DAN HANDEL
PAOLA ANTONELLI and MARIANNE GOEBL with FORMAFANTASMA
AMITAV GHOSH with ELVIRA DYANGANI OSE

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SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM

Tuesday 7 June 2022

SESSION 3 - DESIGNING
Session 3 presents the works of architects, curators and design students that embrace an expansive attitude toward design and actively redefine the relationship between materials and ecosystems.
Speakers:
ANDRÉS JAQUE
AYLA KEKHIA, CONNOR COOK, YASSINE BEN ABDALLAH (GEO-DESIGN DAE)
ROTOR
PAOLA ANTONELLI and ALICE RAWSTHORN with FORMAFANTASMA

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SESSION 4 - SENSING
Session 4 explores different modes of sensing the forest through smell, sound, and the anatomy of wood. The session also looks at the complexity of designing with more-than-human species.
Speakers:
SISSEL TOLAAS and DAVID MONACCHI with BEATRICE LEANZA
VALERIE TROUET
GERALD KOCH with FORMAFANTASMA
ALEXANDRA DAISY GINSBERG with ALICE RAWSTHORN

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SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM

Wednesday 8 June 2022

SESSION 5 - GOVERNING
Session 5 introduces wood as carbon storage, while highlighting the criticalities connected to carbon offsetting, the governance of natural ecosystems and the political forces shaping forests.
Speakers:
STEFANO BOERI
PHILIPP PATTBERG and NIKLAS KASKEALA with FORMAFANTASMA
PAULO TAVARES with BEATRICE LEANZA

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SESSION 6 - INHABITING

Session 6 introduces modes of inhabiting and responsibly sourcing materials from the forest. The session also brings forward forestal indigenous knowledge and ‘feral dynamics’.
Speakers:
URSULA BIEMANN
CAVE BUREAU
EWERK LUCKENWALDE
ANNA TSING and FEIFEI ZHOU with ARIC CHEN

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Location

Prada Frames is hosted at the Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense. Located in the center of Milan, this pristine public library made from walnut wood is an important site of knowledge production in the city. Formafantasma's set-up was deliberately reduced to the bare minimum given the uniqueness of the location: wooden chairs from the Prada Archive were repurposed and paired with a curated selection of iconic wooden chairs by Gio Ponti, Franco Albini and Gerrit T. Rietveld, among others, kindly made available by the Italian contemporary design brand Cassina.