Trama

Project

269678

Status

Submitted

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NEW EUROPEAN BAUHAUS RISING STARS : concepts or ideas submitted by young talents (aged 30 or less)

Project title

Trama

Full concept/idea title

Description

We create a bridge between research and production that passes through design and education able to lead us to innovation.

Where is your concept/idea being developed or intended to be implemented in the EU?

Please provide a summary of your concept/ idea

Trama (weft) is the transversal threads of the fabric, figuratively, the plot of a story. For us, Trama represents the narrative enclosed in every object, but also the network that this project aims to build. Trama is a multidisciplinary platform for the development of collaborative projects. What we do Design Research/Production(product/graphic design)/Education. How it works Trama promotes projects through its own channels and deals with sales and logistics. Trama also organizes workshops and research activity. The platform gets a percentage from the sales of products, necessary to carry on its activities. The network members take part in the single projects, coordinated by Trama’s core team. Who’s joining us Designers, manufacturers, artisans, architects, researchers, educators, academic Institutions. Methodology Trama defined the main project, its values and structure. Then, through a participated process with the network of professionals we developed a shared methodology to follow, that can be Generative of new proposals but also a Verification to identify external projects that could be included in Trama circuit. Following the methodology we made our first project: kandela A line of modular candles in beeswax from sustainable sources and whitened without chemicals. Kandela comes from a study on the original typology of the object and works on the symbolism given by the number of burning flames. The object questions the classic relationship between candle and candle holder through a new form and encourages a different relationship with the person by introducing the concept of modularity of the elements. Through the educational activities we want spread our values and methodology. Programmed educational activities Workshop UI-UX Design Digital Archaeology For master students or design graduates Educational Trip The Design Tour Product/graphic design For designers and artists Mentoring For students of anthropology, ethnography and design.

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of sustainability and how these would be met

Trama, through its network and a multidisciplinary research, aims to combine a small-scale productive system, environmental sustainability and ethics of production, with the purpose to create also culture instead that just products. Trama works on a small and local scale trying to build a network of many artisans, small producers, makers and associations engaged in the support of productive communities. We want to bring together old craftsmanship traditions, natural materials and new technologies with the aim of reducing environmental costs and, at the same time, disconnecting from the mechanism of the designer at the service of big companies, the only in charge of the sustainability of every project. Big and small brands often present sustainability just as one of many features of their products. Today, sustainability can no longer be considered an added value but, on the contrary, as a matter of course. A project cannot exist if it is not conceived to have the least possible impact on the environment. However also considering this impact is not enough. In our overloaded reality, design has the duty to create functional objects, but also to produce value. In Trama we believe that every new object must have a valid reason to exist, which is not simply to perform a task in the best way but to bring innovation, not only technological but also meaningful. For this reason Trama focuses on the creation of an emotional relationship between people and objects. Making these bounds allows artifacts to last instead of quickly becoming waste, they become precious as meaningful objects.

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience beyond functionality and how these would be met

Aesthetics research and cultural contamination are essential to creative process The trends of the moment usually flatten the design landscape by drawing common lines that become light motives from which only a few are able to differentiate themselves. Trama start from the research of different references, that may be brand new or distant and forgotten. We do not draw from the most popular formal choices, instead we research cultural contaminations, comparison with other people and situation. Trama was born in Italy from people who live in Italy and who have also treasured the history of Italian design and craftsmanship. However, we do not want to dig behind the tradition of our country, but rather to seek creative connections with the rest of the world while opening up to old and new technologies. Every object needs to tell a story Objects are the result of the knowledge of the designer and the manufacturer, a knowledge that they are able to silently tell. Good design is able to create  things that can become containers also of the stories of those who will use them. This is how the narrative of the designer is connected to the many personal stories that the object will meet. True beauty is reach though essentiality and synthesis Adding value does not mean adding complexity. The role of design is to find the simplest solution to a need, to compress a series of concepts and functions in an understandable form. From this synthesis process also filters the formal beauty of simplicity.

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of inclusion and how these would be been met

Trama is primarily a community of people that bases its actions, open not only to professionals but also to students with educational activities, on confrontation and discussion and, at the same time, seeks also to involve the final users of its products in the same process. We defined our main project through a shared process The values and mission identified by Trama's team of founders were expanded and completed through a participated process of exchange of ideas and principles along with the first network of partners. thanks to the sharing of experiences and the exposition of of each one personal project approach during a series of co-ideation workshops, we arrived at the definition of a common methodology, as a base for the development of new projects and as a tool to guarantee uniformity and belonging of each project to Trama. Every project comes from the relationship and comparison between different realities We want to work in the field, contact with experts, artisans, designers, scholars, establish a dialogue with universities, research bodies, welfare associations in a perspective as variegated and inclusive as possible. We want to involve people in the research step and in the definition of the concept by organizing discussions and labs. Create a relationship with the end user by working on the project degrees of freedom Who will choose our products will have the possibility to make the last step, to decide autonomously how to use, compose, read and interpret that object, in order to make it his own. The educational project We are involving universities and other educational realities to bring the sphere of research closer to that of design. We want to share our values with young designers and researchers through workshops and mentoring activities for students to include them in our process. These activities and exchanges will be the basis for the construction of our internal research center.  

Please explain the innovative character of your concept/ idea

Trama is not only a brand of products Each object is the result of a research that touches many aspects and is proposed as a vehicle for innovation. Trama is a complex structure that encloses different experiences and people united by common values that express their ideas by following the same methodology. We build a bridge between research and design production Also outside the universities with the desire to create our own internal research center combining the skills of professionals, institutions, associations, young designers and students and to share our experiences through educational programs. From theme identification, to the project up to the realization Overcoming the separation between the designer, involved in the definition of the project, and the producer, the final executor of the product. The goal is to promote a symbiotic approach among design and production, in which one sphere takes inspiration from the other and vice versa. A combination of small and large forces Small producers, artisans, professionals who work in a sustainable way that together with bigger institutions, such as universities and cultural and social associations, can be part of a wider project and gain visibility by using a unified channel. We are focused on creating a multicultural network This project was born in 2020 with the creation of a first group of Italian realities interested in taking part in Trama. However, this first step we want to follow the widening of our network outside the national borders, opening to Europe and the world in search of manufacturers, designers, thinkers and existing projects, convinced as we are that the comparison with other cultures and situations is essential to achieve any kind of innovation.

Please detail the plans you have for the further development, promotion and/or implementation of your concept/idea, with a particular attention to the initiatives to be taken before May 2022

The main steps planned between now and next year divided by category Network Expand our network by reaching out to cultural associations, social organizations, other academic partners and educational institutions, producers, suppliers. Expanding both in Italy and abroad. Communication Develop a promotional campaign for the launch of the first project, Kandela. Increase the staff for the management and social communication of products and activities. Production Kandela Increase the production of moulds for candles to scale up production Expand the laboratory and its production capacity Start with online sales. New products Bring to fruition two more products together with designers of the network. Educational project  Digital Archaeology - research phase complete Elaborate a defined plan of the activity Compile a cost plan Conduct the first workshop by fall and define a model that can be re-proposed to other institutions.   The Design Tour  Complete the research phase  Elaborate possible itineraries  Contact institutions and professionals interested in participating. Mentoring activities Contact with universities for the structure of a collaboration that includes students and PhD candidates.

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that the proposed concept/idea has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Rising Stars Awards more than once in the same category.