AI interpretations of iconic modernist furniture by frank gehry & enzo mari are brought to life

dottod collective fuses ai, furniture design, and digital art

On view at the Il·lacions Design Gallery in Barcelona, the Icons’ Replicants exhibition delves into the intersection of AI, furniture design, and digital art. Created by Jana Tothill Calvo and Pietro Rustici from DOTTOD Collective, the collection showcases real-life furniture and objects resulting from AI’s visual interpretations of iconic design pieces by Enzo Mari, Frank Gehry, Alvar Aalto, and others. Official descriptions of the iconic objects served as text-based prompts for an intelligent machine, which resulted in AI-generated images that were then brought to life by the design duo who crafted functional prototypes of the furniture objects — from Gehry’s Contour Chair to Andre Ricard’s ashtray.

Following the culmination of the exhibition at Il·lacions on September 15, the prototypes will be available for purchase on the gallery e-shop.

‘icons’ replicants’ on display at Il·lacions Design Gallery

Bridging the gap between digital and physical worlds, DOTTOD Collective engaged in continuous negotiation with the AI-generated artifacts, seeking to strike a balance between feasibility and fidelity, and materiality and surreality. Throughout the process, the designers maintained the integrity of the original designs while embracing the AI’s vision. In a shift of design paradigm moving away from the classic methodology, the design team worked to bring the AI’s vision to life while maintaining the functionality and integrity of the original designs.

DOTTOD collective has established an online gallery showcasing both the digital and physical works of Icons’ Replicants. This virtual exhibition space serves as a platform for both the AI-generated images and physical prototypes, emphasizing the symbiotic relationship between the digital and physical realms in design.

One of the core aspects of Icons’ Replicants is the role of AI as both the curator and creator. By delegating part of the practice to this new tool, utilizing an AI to interpret and recreate iconic designs, DOTTOD Collective has been able to inject is creative input into other aspects of the process. ‘This approach highlights the importance of collaboration between AI and human designers, as they dialogue between the digital creations and their physical counterparts,’ note DOTTOD’s Jana Tothill Calvo and Pietro Rustici.

project info:

name: Icons’ Replicants
designer: DOTTOD Collective – Jana Tothill Calvo & Pietro Rustici

gallery: Il·lacions Design Gallery

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