On the Square with IRENIE STUDIO

Join us at 9 De Beauvoir Square with interior architect Irenie Cossey - a whimsical show space for craft, design & storytelling

Dublin-born interior architect and curator Irenie Cossey, recently invited us inside her latest project at 9 De Beauvoir Square.

Working in collaboration with makers and designers, Irenie has reimagined this once-abandoned house in Hackney, as a temporary exhibition space and design experiment.

By inviting artists to respond to the space - its history, its materials and its shifting light - she has transformed the home into a platform for contemporary craft and creative friendship.

The history of the building is woven into curtains and echoed in blown glass; craftsmanship becomes storytelling.

On the Square features Jochen Holz and Michael Murphy (Muck), whose work will be showcased at Flow this year, alongside many other makers that we’ve had the pleasure of discovering.

ABOVE ;   Ceramics; Minifundium Vases by Attua Aparicio   /   Glass by J Hill   /   Curtain by Tomoyo Tsurumi, made using Kvadrat Fabrics

One of our favourite moments to emerge is Irenie’s poetic collaboration with Irish glass manufacturer J. Hill’s Standard - a studio focused on evolving the heritage of hand-made glass in Ireland.

A glass milk bottle unearthed during the house’s renovation became the starting point for a new series of glass forms. Drawing on the dreamlike spirit of Alice in Wonderland that weaves throughout the project, they co-created the Mad Chatter Vessels - a joyful quartet of sculptural pieces that play with scale, silhouette, and the animated interplay between objects. These vessels are pourers, holders, and storytellers.

‘They echo the shape of their buried ancestor, each one a reminder that memory lives in material, and every good story deserves a bottle.’

- Irenie Cossey

We look forward to sharing these pieces with you at Flow soon.

ABOVE :   Glass by J. Hill x On The Sq.

It was lovely to see the work of Irish woodworker and sculptor Michael Murphy (Muck) featured, and we look forward to showcasing his work at Flow later this year.

Above is his piece for Irene’s space - The Upside Down Collection - made from fallen Irish Oak in collaboration with Kasia Kempa, Flavia Bränle and Irenie.

‘The collection grew out of conversations, studio visits and exchanges of drawings…Taking its name from the Irish Gaelic for ‘upside down’, Bunoscionn evokes the sense of a piece of furniture coming to life - even when flipped over and rested on a table. Channeling the physical memory of chairs turned over to make space for sweeping the floor, for dancing, and for looking at life slightly askew, the Shaker brooms were designed to complete the story in a physical way.’

- Irenie Cossey

ABOVE :   Upside Down Collection - Set: Shaker BroomS & Upside Down Chair & Shelf by Flavia Brändle / Kasia Kempa / Muck 

Throughout the house On the Square’s design partners - Domus, Kvadrat and Fenwick & Tilbrook - showcase their tiles, fabrics and paints. Five chairs designed by Robin Day in the 1950s have been reupholstered in deadstock Kvadrat fabrics by Stow Studio. Diamond-patterned tiled floors are inspired by the diamond window panes.The Rosa Red paint in the hall, made by Norfolk-based Fenwick & Tilbrook, references a rose bush in De Beauvoir Square.

Each room at On theSquare speaks in layers, as makers respond to the building.

Textiles salvaged from the home’s original furnishings have been reimagined into delicate, handwoven curtains by Tomoyo Tsurumi. In another room, Eva the Weaver, in collaboration with The Tweed Project, transforms offcuts of Kvadrat fabrics into textural blankets.

Our thanks to Irenie for inviting us into her world.

We look forward to showcasing works by Muck & J. Hill at Flow soon, and are pleased to present a showcase of new glass works by Jochen Holz below.

Portrait by Ellen Christina Hancock   /   Interior photography by Isobel Napier
Glass Jug by Jochen Holz   /   Carved Timber Panel by Muck

JOCHEN HOLZ SHOWCASE :

This showcase features Jochen’s bark-textured vessels, including a Sake Set made exclusively for Flow. Made using flame-working techniques in Jochen’s East London studio, the set captures his signature fluidity.

We’ll be using the set next month during a special Sake Tasting at the opening of our upcoming exhibition by Chinoko Sakamoto.

Photography by Isobel Napier
Portrait by Ellen Christina Hancock