‘We Support Young Brands and Make Them Visible’
On March 7, the HSE Art Gallery hosted the opening of ‘Design Futures: Synesthesia’, an exhibition featuring works by students of product and jewellery design at the HSE Art and Design School. The event runs from March 9–May 7.
The exhibition marked the launch of Design Futures, a new programme to support students of the school who are working in the field of subject and jewellery design. Under the project, student works serve as the basis for creating a brand and a line of products. The Art and Design School provides promotional support and assistance implementing the first products and prototypes.
Maria Stepanova
Maria Stepanova, curator of the ‘Design Futures: Synesthesia’ exhibition and head of Product and Industrial design at the Art and Design School, noted that this is a debut exhibition for the field and the HSE Art Gallery. ‘This is a major and important step for us. We are announcing a new programme to support students—Design Futures—and a general field—Creative Futures. By doing so, we are bringing together object design, jewellery design, fashion, and even games. We support young brands and make them visible,’ she noted.
Daria Kuznetsova
Daria Kuznetsova, Director of the HSE Art Gallery and curator of the ‘Design Futures: Synesthesia’ exhibition, spoke in more detail about the contents of the exhibition itself. ‘The hall is divided into three sections. The first features a levitating air tent containing décor items—cute everyday things that make our home cosier like plates, cups, candles, and vases. The second hall presents larger, more serious objects: armchairs, tables, ottomans, bedside tables, etc. This hall showcases the achievements of our students, very cool items that could be launched in the product design market right now. In the third hall, you can see jewellery masterpieces lit by student-designed lamps,’ she explains.
As part of the event, Anya Ovchinnikova displayed chairs for the Woody company and mushroom shelves. ‘These are all completely different projects. They are not related to each other, and each of them is an individual piece,’ she said.
Vladislav Khegai, first-year student of the Master’s in Product and Industrial Design at HSE University, presented a chess set made of cement-gypsum mortar, a metal FLOW table, a leaf-shaped armchair, and a beige armchair in a maximalist style shaped like a hyperbola. ‘For the chess set, I first made a 3D mould in a computer program and printed it out. I then added the finishing touches, and created models into which I poured silicone then cement-gypsum mortar. It sounds quick and easy, but in practice it was a very laborious and time-consuming process,’ explains Vladislav Khegai.
Valeria Orlova, second-year student of the Master’s in Product and Industrial Design, also presented a chess set. ‘My work is made from felt. The pieces are unique as you can fold them up and fit them inside the board itself. You can easily take it with you in a suitcase or bag. They don’t become crumpled because felt is very durable and firm—it doesn’t rip or lose its colour,’ she explains.
The HSE News Service also spoke to visitors of the exhibition about their thoughts and impressions of the objects on display.
Anna Nazarikova and Sofia Chabykina, first-year students of the Bachelor’s in Management in Creative Industries at HSE University, visited the exhibition. ‘I absolutely love the atmosphere here,’ said Anna. ‘I have been following all the exhibitions held at the HSE Art Gallery for a long time, as I worked here for a while as a media manager and the things that go on here always impress me.’ Sofia added that they were invited to the exhibition by their lecturer Daria Kuznetsova. ‘We should always keep up to date with events,’ said Sofia. ‘I am also interested in design—all of this is very interesting to me. We are currently also working on an exhibition of our graduation project, and we need to know how such exhibitions are created and learn more about this field. It was very interesting here today. They are still only students, but they make super professional and unique things.’
See also:
Art and Design School Announces ‘Parajanov—100: Collage / Poster’ Contest
The HSE University Art and Design School and the Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) University, in collaboration with the Sergei Parajanov Museum and the Artists' Union of Armenia, have announced an open contest dedicated to the centenary of Sergei Parajanov’s birth. The contest starts on March 7.
HSE University-St Petersburg Art and Design School and Hungarian Cultural Centre Open Joint Exhibition
HSE University-St Petersburg is hosting the exhibition 'From Hódmezővásárhely to Mosonmagyaróvár: A Typographic Journey around Hungary'. The exhibition showcases lettering compositions devoted to ten Hungarian cities and created by students of the HSE University-St Petersburg Art and Design School. The opening ceremony was attended by the director of the Hungarian Cultural Centre and the science and technology attaché of the Embassy of Hungary in the Russian Federation.
Kamchatka: Your Amazing Adventure
The photo exhibition ‘Kamchatka: Your Amazing Adventure’ was officially opened as part of the Days of Kamchatka event held by HSE University in the building on Pokrovsky Boulevard from January 19 to February 10. Visitors will learn about life in the region through photos of the unique landscapes and wildlife sanctuaries of the peninsula, the traditional Beringia dog-sled race, and the main symbols of the Kamchatka Region—brown bears, Pacific salmon, and wild reindeer.
HSE Art and Design School Announces Competition Results, Explores the Art of Photography, and Opens New Exhibition
The HSE Art and Design School held three important events in the run-up to the New Year’s holidays: announcing the winners of the second season of the international HSE Creative Open competition, hosting the final lecture of the October–December open lecture season, and launching the Diploma22 graduation project exhibition at the HSE Art Gallery.
New Design Festival ‘Sreda’ 2022: HSE Art and Design School Again Named Educational Institution of the Year
The jury of the New Design Festival ‘Sreda’ 2022 have announced their winners. Projects by students, graduates and curators of the HSE Art and Design School have won prizes and received special awards, while the School was selected as the educational institution of the year for the second year in a row. Evgeny Kashirin, lecturer at the HSE Art and Design School, was named tutor of the year.
HSE Art and Design School Accepts Projects for Contemporary Art Competition
The first season of the new competition for prospective applicants of HSE Art and Design School has started. The competition aims to unite promising young artists on one platform. The winners will receive tuition discounts of up to 100% for the HSE Bachelor's Programme in Contemporary Art.
‘Defining Yourself: Subject / Process / Identity’: New Exhibition Opens at HSE ART GALLERY
From November 9 to December 4, the HSE ART GALLERY is hosting an exhibition of works by students and lecturers of the HSE Art and Design School. The ‘Defining Yourself: Subject / Process / Identity’ exhibition lays the foundation of a multidisciplinary project about building connections between folk crafts, artistic practices, and modern research. The exhibition also has a parallel programme in the form of a curatorial excursion, an open talk, and an evening of performances.
Students of HSE Art and Design School Take All Prizes at ADCR Awards
Eight works by students of the HSE Art and Design School are among the winners in the ‘Students’ category of the ADCR Awards, a Russian professional competition in the field of creativity, design and advertising. HSE students won all gold, silver and bronze awards. Many student works were also included in the shortlist of the competition, while Evgeny Kashirin, lecturer at the HSE Art and Design School, was named tutor of the year.
‘Working at HSE University, I Am Involved in the Creation of Hundreds of Objects’
Maria Stepanova’s work at the HSE University Art and Design School allows her to be part of a creative community and help students find their way in the industrial and product design industry. In her interview with HSE University’s Age-Mates, Maria talks about the cult Japanese studio Nendo, original carpets in the shape of a twelve-legged leopard, and her dream of opening student workshops at the Art and Design School.
Architectural Design Project of HSE Lyceum Wins Award at Build School 2022
The 6th international exhibition ‘Build School 2022’ has taken place in Moscow. It is a unique event dedicated to various aspects of design and equipment for educational spaces. The exhibition’s main theme—‘an inclusive educational space’—brought together the business programme and the Build School Project competition. The competition winners included a joint team of the HSE Design Lab and the HSE Lyceum, as well as HSE Art and Design School student Ksenia Nuzhdina.