Objects of Common Interest Explores Design Through Musical Contrasts
The design studio reveals how experimental soundscapes influence their spatial installations and creative process.
1Bridging Sound and Space
Eleni Petaloti and Leonidas Trampoukis, founders of the studio Objects of Common Interest, view design and music as parallel creative languages. Based in Athens and New York, they explore how form, color, and material shape human perception. Their work frequently integrates these elements to create unexpected, immersive experiences for their audience.
2The Miami Design Installation
Their latest public project, Out of This World – A Field of Conditions, is currently presented in the Miami Design District. This installation features six distinct conditions designed to alter how visitors perceive their surroundings. The studio uses these interactive sculptures to challenge the familiarity of everyday environments through physical spatial manipulation.
3Musical Influence on Creativity
The duo utilizes a diverse playlist to navigate their design process, citing artists like New Order, Talking Heads, and Aphex Twin. They believe music helps break creative blocks and shifts their energy during long studio hours. These tracks serve as a tool to manage the emotional atmosphere of their workspace daily.
4Defining the Design Philosophy
For the studio, the song Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order captures their practice perfectly. They admire the track's coexistence of emotion, structure, and repetition. This specific tension between precision and unpredictability mirrors their own approach to designing objects and interiors, where they aim to balance scientific logic with romantic intuition.
5Focusing on Quiet Details
When the team needs to slow down and concentrate on minute details, they turn to the delicate piano work of Aphex Twin. They emphasize that the space between notes is as significant as the notes themselves. This minimalist approach informs how they refine their prototypes and sculptural components within the studio.
6Theatricality in Public Work
If visitors were to experience their latest installation with a soundtrack, the studio suggests Soft Cell’s Tainted Love. They appreciate the track's theatrical, eccentric personality and irresistible rhythm. This choice highlights their desire to inject a sense of strangeness and playfulness into the public's interaction with their architectural and sculptural works.
7Visual and Auditory Synthesis
The studio finds inspiration in album cover art, specifically New Order’s Power, Corruption and Lies. They value the unexpected relationship between the classical floral painting and the coded graphic system. This combination of two unrelated languages reflects their own goal of creating new identities through the fusion of disparate design elements.
8Curiosity as a Driver
The track Sound and Vision by David Bowie best describes their recent Miami installation. The song encapsulates a world where sound, color, and imagination coexist seamlessly. By prioritizing curiosity, the studio continues to push the boundaries of how people experience familiar spaces, transforming mundane environments into sites of unexpected discovery.