"Design evolution is always a matter of empirical experiment, materials and technology – for this exhibition we worked with a hidden traditional stitching textile technology which we transformed into a 2D-to-3D-furniture pop-up concept." Werner Aisslinger, 2010

3D pop-ups
The NETwork edition is the transformation of 2- dimensional embroidery into a pop-up furniture object. The empirical design project is a combination of the application of new high technologies to traditional stitching techniques and a collection of edited textile objects. Since Gaetano Pesce´s UP-collection from 1969, the switch of dimensions has been a challenge for designers  and design concepts.The pieces of the 'NETwork - stitching furniture' edition – armchairs, stools and lamps – are  volumes carefully designed for later flattening with software support. The objects created are extremely light and transparent and they seem to flow in space as 3d textile meta-networks.

Tradition & high tech
This new 3D textile pop-up technology is an empirical research-result developed with a traditional German manufacturer in Plauen, a region with a long tradition in stitching and embroidery. The combination of experimental design with a hidden traditional production is always a challenge for designers and an exciting field for new concepts. Nowadays the know-how of specialized technologies is more often found in the supplying industries than in the design brands themselves.

Designing by making
Empirical experiments often are the source of new ideas. Doing things in the workshops and factories and combining the outcomes with the experience of sophisticated manufacturers is inspiring and energetic.

The process
The volumes are first translated with software into 2d projections of themselves that can be directly programmed  into the machines that stitch the pattern into a carrying surface. The carrying surface is then dissolved and the embroidered 2d pattern becomes free to form a 3d object.  The objects formed by  the stitched honeycomb structures are fixed over a fiberglass mould and impregnated with resin in order to make them rigid and constructive.

Technical partner: Gerber GmbH, Plauen, Germany
Fabrics: kvadrat, Denmark
Project team Studio Aisslinger: Werner Aisslinger, Nicole Losos, Julene Aguirre-Bielschowsky, Verena Stella Gompf, Johannes Becker, Gabriele Gebert