Context
The third edition of Romanian Creative Week Festival gathered multidisciplinary works of within the central theme of wonder, inviting all participants to imagine better futures, or altered and shifting perspectives of present perceptions. As part of the central pillar of the festival (fashion), the Wonderland Pavilion aimed to reimagine the creative spaces of six referential Romanian fashion designers, provoking a spatial narrative between the observer and the observed through mirroring surfaces.

Architecture
The building itself in which the pavilion is placed holds historical meanings. The Palace of Culture in Iași was built in 1925 in neogothic style, infused with interior oriental ornamentation and heraldic exterior elements. As a direct echo to its historical surroundings, the pavilion features a perfectly square shaped labyrinth plan, becoming an intentionally deceiving object that resonates with its context. Both visible and invisible, solid and ethereal, the pavilion reflects the majestic interior hallway and its alluring architecture, while incapsulating within its six enclosures a physical representation of the abstract essence of each designer’s creative space. Full metal sheets with mirroring surfaces fully wrap a slim wooden structure, becoming an eerie magic open box. Its radical simplicity contrasts the opulent surroundings, turning the structure into a void, an immaterial presence.

Project Specs:
Title: Wonderland Pavilion
Place: The Palace of Culture, Iași, Romania
Festival: Romanian Creative Week 2023
Architecture: AÉ02
Fashion Curator: Ovidiu Buta
Construction: Atelier Vast
Lighting: Greentek Lighting