CONTRIBUTIONS Pairs Objects With Soundscapes in Paris

"CONTRIBUTIONS Festival's second edition, the nonprofit organization founded by design consultants Anna Caradeuc and Elise Daunay, fundamentally challenges this premise by treating sound not as background atmosphere but as structural element a layer of meaning that transforms how we perceive material culture. The decision to commission musicians to respond directly to exhibited works creates a dynamic where acoustic and physical forms become mutually constitutive rather than hierarchically arranged."

"The most compelling manifestation of this approach appears in Emily Thurman's bell-adorned furniture. Her Mother's Love Rocking Chair and Cheer Up, for You Are So Young Rocking Stool function simultaneously as sculptural objects and instruments. The bells some sourced globally, others sculpted by Thurman herself and strung by Paris-based jeweler Zoe Mohm create a constellation that activates through use rather than remaining static ornamentation."

"Kevin Morby's wandering soundtrack incorporates these resonant tones, establishing a feedback loop where the furniture's sonic properties inform the composed music, which in turn recontextualizes how visitors approach the physical forms. Thurman's broader Hundo collection draws its name from proto-Italic etymology foundry, meaning to pour out a reference that connects bronze casting techniques to concepts of devotional practice. The collection thus operates across multiple temporal registers, linking ancient metalworking traditions to contemporary craft revival"

CONTRIBUTIONS Festival's second edition treats sound as a structural layer that transforms perception of material culture. Musicians were commissioned to respond directly to works, creating acoustic and physical forms that are mutually constitutive. Emily Thurman's bell-adorned furniture functions as sculptural instruments; her Mother's Love Rocking Chair and Cheer Up, for You Are So Young Rocking Stool activate bells sourced globally and handmade, strung by jeweler Zoe Mohm. Kevin Morby's wandering soundtrack incorporates those resonances, forming a feedback loop that reshapes visitor engagement. Thurman's Hundo collection references proto-Italic etymology meaning 'foundry' and links bronze-casting techniques to devotional practice. Pauline Esparon's Dabgar series employs centuries-old Pakistani parchment-making traditions.

Read at design-milk.com