A new initiative in Detroit is pairing world-renowned designers with area businesses, artists, manufacturers and organizations to create products with a “green space” theme. The program is presented by Culture Lab Detroit, an organization that “fosters conversations and collaborations between Detroit and the international design community.” The Culture Lab design collection will be available at a pop-up shop inside the Detroit design store Nora for two weeks, then will be sold online.
David Stark will conceptualize and create the shopping experience, a store-within-a-store, which he has designed with gold accents and bales of hay supplied by local farms. The pop-up will sell exclusive products like lighting vases and planters.
Designers were paired with local Detroit artisans by the founder of Culture Lab Detroit, Jane Schulak. The pairings include:
David Stark with Victoria Ashley Shaheen
Kelly Behun with Cass Community Social Services
Estudio Campana with Todd Erickson
Sebastian Errazuriz with Samuel Arambula at TechShop
Paola Navone with Andrew Ward at Line Studio and makers at Detroit Denim and Detroit Sewn
Other Detroit-area artisans have also been commissioned to create products for the pop-up, including Ali Sandifer’s husband-and-wife furniture-making team, Abir Ali and Andre Sandifer, who have created a collection of trays made from walnut and maple.
“Culture Lab Detroit is a platform for connectivity,” says Schulak. “By inviting world-renowned installation artist and event designer David Stark to create the pop-up at Nora and filling it with objects created by international designers partnering with local artists and businesses, Culture Lab Detroit’s big-picture goal of harnessing the power of design and collaboration to stimulate local business is happening in real time.”
“It is a great honor to collaborate with Culture Lab Detroit on its very first pop-up shop at Nora,” says Stark, “and it’s been great fun to conceive of a retail happening that is in direct conversation with Culture Lab Detroit’s recent exploration of ‘green spaces.’ Literally a grassroots project, our store-in-store structure will house products from designers that I have great respect for, all relating to the land. Truly exciting.”
The Culture Lab Design collection will include pieces ranging in price from $65 to $2,000, and will be available at Nora from October 30 to November 15, and online at noramodern.com.
