jérémy couture + claudia després: birdhouses

the canadian multidisciplinary design collective 6.1 (jérémy couture + claudia després) has created a series of birdhouses, taken roughly as a whole village, each made for specific birds: the believer, the dreamer, the female bird’s lover, the good eater, the handy bird, the home owner, the voyeur etc.

the collection of 13 birdhouses was presented as part of the ’20 designers at biologiska’ exhibition at the biologiska museum during the 2011 stockholm furniture fair.

‘bedlight’ russian plywood, electric cable, compact fluorescent lights (CFL) all images courtesy of 6.1

‘bedlight’ stands alone as its own birdhouse and bedside night light table. its roof provides the perfect bookmark for your bedtime literature.

‘bedlight’ functions as a bookmark / bed side nightlight

‘the church’ russian plywood, gold paint, lacquer, steel

this birdhouse church is a tall lantern that features a cross on its façade, in a which a light source can be placed inside, illuminating the iconic symbol and recreating the calm atmosphere of contemplation.

‘the church’ illuminated

‘the strip club’ russian plywood, LEDs, acrylic, steel

with a classic vertical inviting ‘XXX’ street sign, ‘the strip club’ – painted in black as a means of adding a mystic allure to the object – is the perfect getaway for male birds on a cold winter night.

‘XXX’ sign lit

‘the key hole’ russian plywood, acrylic mirror

establishing a relationship between two birds, ‘the key hole’ contains a mirror within, allowing a voyeuristic bird to admire a vain bird admiring himself within the reflective surface.

‘the key hole’

‘the plant support’ russian plywood, paint, hand-painted by hugo-pierre fleury

a ladder leads one up to the birdhouse, which when embedded within a flower pot acts as a support for plants when needed. hovering over your greenery the birds can live in their natural habitat without getting tired of flying. down below, there is even a garden in which they can rest.

‘the camouflage’ russian plywood, bark

the birdhouse is covered in birch bark, a natural skin, preventing it from being invaded by unexpected predators. it has been made for chicken-hearted birds and countryside living lovers. it can also be used as a hunting cache.

‘the construction’ russian plywood, tyvek

built for entrepreneurial birds who prefer custom living, ‘the construction’ birdhouse provides a solid wooden frame structure with insulating tyvek covering its walls.

‘the feeder’ russian plywood, paint

the ideal for greedy birds, the house is a pantry of compressed food. as birds eat away at the edible front façade they are simultaneously creating a house of their own.

‘the fence’ russian plywood

this lantern reveals a bright fence at night. the birdhouse’s wooden construction at the front, is relatively thin at certain places, which makes the pattern of the fence visible from the backlight. the scene is completed with the moon over the fence.

‘the home decor’ russian plywood, ribbons, fabric

a little abode for those interior design loving birds. it comes with four white walls and a wooden floor, and the roof can be opened in which furniture stickers can be added allowing one to creating a space in which they feel right at home.

‘the night light’ russian plywood, photo sensible light

for those night hawks out there, this is a small lamp which provides light, guiding you through the dark.

‘the night light’ series of birdhouses

‘the big birdhouse’ sticker

this sticker turns your house into the birdhouse, looking outside from within.

‘the ribbon’ – yellow russian plywood, ribbons, fabric

‘the ribbon’ is a birdhouse with a new kind of fixture. as a means of hanging the houses, you simply need to gather some rocks, fill an accompanying bag with the weights and throw it over a branch. pull the attached colorful ribbons until the birdhouse has reached a desirable height. attach the bag around the tree, or detach the ribbons inside the bag to make a knot around a lower branch. without rain, a rainbow is unraveled.

‘the ribbon’ – green

‘the ribbon’ – blue

demonstrating the use of ‘the ribbon’ birdhouse

the ribbons provide a colorful rainbow in your backyard

‘the ribbon’ series – all colors

the village of birdhouses

the village

images of making the birdhouses:

sanding the edges of ‘the home decor’ birdhouse

‘the home decor’ and ‘the construction birdhouses waiting to be finished

‘the plant support’ ready to be painted

‘the church’ and ‘the ribbon’ birdhouses still under construction

line-up of unfinished birdhouses