fala turns leftover metal into color-coded grid that multiplies itself through mirror in porto

fala installs mirrored pavilion at porto’s book fair

The architects at fala atelier transform a 10-square-meter book fair stand into a spatial installation for Circo de Ideias in Porto, Portugal. Working within a 3-by-3-meter footprint and a limited budget, the project refuses the neutrality expected of a standard exhibition stand.

The structure is assembled from leftover metal profiles of varying sections, repainted in a fresh, almost excessive color palette ranging from acid greens and electric blues to teals and greys. Twenty-four pieces in total are organized around a slightly displaced central column, introducing a sense of instability into an otherwise orthogonal logic. Profiles of the same color never meet. They approach, hesitate, and resolve themselves into knots rather than intersections, a three-dimensional grid that carries traces of Superstudio’s Supersurface and faintly recalls Eisenman’s formal logic.

all images by Lera Samovich unless stated otherwise

mirrored interiors expand the stand beyond its limits

The metal structure is lined along its interior perimeter with mirrors. The twenty-four elements are replicated and extended in three directions, producing a spatial field that exceeds the physical boundaries of the stand. During the fair, books, visitors, and the surrounding park are continuously absorbed and projected back, shelves of architecture titles appear to recede indefinitely, and the book fair’s neighboring stands are reversed and suspended within the reflection. What begins as a constrained box begins to suggest an improbable depth.

The colours, developed in parallel with other projects by the studio, appear almost incidental. Yet they find an unexpected correspondence with the peacocks inhabiting the park outside. When one passes by, the installation momentarily aligns with its context, as if the constructed and the accidental had been calibrated in advance.

The project is a collaboration between architects Filipe Magalhães, Ana Luisa Soares, Ahmed Belkhodja and Lera Samovich of fala atelier and Artworks, who handled production.

the stand sits among identical units

the stand opens to the fair, revealing a layered interplay of books, structure, and reflections | image by Francisco Ascensão

a central column anchors the composition | image by Francisco Ascensão

architecture books appear to recede infinitely within the mirrored interior | image by Francisco Ascensão

visitors move through the grid as books and bodies fragment across reflective surfaces

blurring the boundary between object and reflection

the three-dimensional grid extends across reflections | image by Francisco Ascensão

the mirrors dissolve the physical limits of the stand | image by Francisco Ascensão

overhead, the lightweight canopy contrasts with the rigid grid | image by Francisco Ascensão

mirrored panels fragment and multiply the coloured metal profiles | image by Francisco Ascensão

a peacock passes by, echoing the palette of the installation | image by Francisco Ascensão

roosters gather at the threshold

shelves, visitors, and neighbouring stands are absorbed and reprojected in shifting perspectives | image by Francisco Ascensão

at night, the mirrored interior amplifies light | image by Francisco Ascensão

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Superstudio, Supersurface Sunset, 1971 | the work inspired the concept of the project

Peter Eisenman, House VI | the work inspired the concept of the project

collage by fala atelier

collage by fala atelier

project info:

name: 201

architect: fala atelier | @fala.atelier

area: 10 square meters

location: Porto, Portugal

design team: Filipe Magalhães, Ana Luisa Soares, Ahmed Belkhodja, Lera Samovich

client: Circo de Ideias | @circo_de_ideias

production: Artworks

photographers: Francisco Ascensão | @francisco.ascensao, Lera Samovich