The Enfold pavilion by DEOND, displayed at Dubai Design Week, is a profound exploration of material innovation, sustainable design, and technological integration. Created entirely from corrugated cardboard, the pavilion’s structure and finish embody the concept of a “second skin” that adapts to the user’s presence and state, merging technology with organic form.

This choice of material – cardboard, a highly recyclable and renewable resource – reflects DEOND’s dedication to ecological responsibility, aligning the pavilion’s physical presence with a commitment to sustainability. The cardboard structure, meticulously designed to follow a biomimetic aesthetic, takes inspiration from natural elements, resembling a rough, spiky seed on the outside while offering a calm, regenerative experience inside.

The design leverages the unique properties of cardboard, including its ability to be shaped and layered, creating a durable yet lightweight shell that complements the pavilion’s circular form. The perforated roof, a standout feature of the structure, is strategically crafted with varied density and sizes of perforations, enabling soft sunlight to filter into the interior space, enhancing the experience with naturally shifting illumination throughout the day.

Inside, the pavilion extends its exploration of materiality by integrating a “phy-gital” display—a combination of physical and digital elements—to form a volumetric podium composed of reflective wires and digital screens. The suspended wires in particular are arranged to visually merge into a garment form, the HUG bodysuit, at specific viewpoints. This unique garment, designed to interact with light and space, is free of bulky support structures, relying instead on a novel suspension system to achieve a floating, ethereal quality. The materials and structural ingenuity of this installation speak to DEOND’s ambition to dissolve boundaries between natural forms and technological constructs, presenting a pavilion that is both materially grounded and conceptually forward-thinking. Through Enfold, DEOND proposes a sustainable, immersive experience that embraces both the natural and digital realms, using materials as a medium to harmonize the human, environmental, and technological dimensions of design.

Photos: Deed Studio