ROUTE-IN presented by Athens Design Forum

Athens Design Forum is pleased to present ROUTE-IN, a site-specific outdoor installation by Tbilisi-based Rooms Studio [est. 2007] commissioned for 5VIE Design Week. Hosted in the historic Milanese SIAM 1838 Courtyard, ROUTE-IN is a progression of Rooms Studio’s research into public space as a central axis of society. Athens Design Forum advocates for design principles that amplify narratives interwoven with heritage and migration patterns. This collaboration crystallises how the designers’ transformation of architectural prototypes creates a lasting dialogue between time, migration, and space.

Helmed by Nata Janberidze and Keti Toloraia, Rooms Studio’s isolated benches stem from the congressional strength of ecclesiastical Orthodox prototypes. Te open-ended cyclical formation of six distinct benches prompts viewers to engage with design in a targeted momentum where the public space becomes a choreographic element outlined by the audience’s movement. Reflecting the boundaries present in the hierarchy of orthodox church seating arrangements, visitors are invited to refrain from physical contact with the benches. Their role as spectators prompts them to visualise in tactile form how congregation, power, and the public space intersect. At once, the essence of unity becomes embodied and enforced by design.