Developed in collaboration with artist Danh Vo, chef Frederik Bille Brahe, and curator Marianne Torp. Svalegangen, the extension of SMK (Statens Museum for Kunst, National Gallery of Denmark), went through a transformation in preparation for Danh Vo’s exhibition “Take My Breath Away”. Historic plaster casts from the West India Warehouse were placed throughout the space alongside planters and Enzo Mari-inspired furniture. The strategy was to develop a simple planter system that could be used to additionally tune the space. Pallets were used as bases to make it possible to easily change the arrangement of the planters in the space. Spacer layers were added to allow for many different sizes of plants and to enable planters of different heights. Finally, bench layers were added to create intimacy with the plants. Plants, soil, and layers of wood chips were added to the planters outside the museum, after which the planters were driven inside. The final arrangement, or “tuning”, of planter heights and locations was made within the space. Additionally, a family of benches was designed that fit into and soften the stone stairs at the main entrance of SMK. These small and playful stools were made using the leftover pine planks from the production of SMK Planters.
