2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well) 
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well) 
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well) 
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well) 
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well) 
2019 // Milestone Barbershop refurbishing
2019 // Milestone Barbershop refurbishing
2019 // Milestone Barbershop refurbishing
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design 
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design 
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design 
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design 
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design 
2018 // LAVA coffee table
2018 // LAVA coffee table
2018 // LAVA coffee table
2017 // Electric Castle
2017 // Electric Castle 
2017 // Electric Castle
2017 // Electric Castle 
2017 // Electric Castle
2016 // TIFF Sign
2016 // TIFF Sign
2016 // Casa K
2016 // Casa K
HISTORY
Atelier MASS is an architectural studio based in Cluj, established in March 2011. It was formed by four friends, former colleagues who shared the same passion for projects that expand the boundaries of professional practice and have been working together on competitions for several years.
SPECIFIC
Their design work seeks open collaborations with people from other fields to achieve better solutions in different architecture related areas. Their guideline is the common interest in researching the Romanian urban environment and identifying small scale ways to improve it.
ROMANIAN DESIGN WEEK APPEARANCES
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well)
For our first collaboration with Summer Well festival, we are bringing back the playful experience of a tree house from where you can overlook the festival grounds and the impressive view of the lake or simply relax and gaze at the sky.
We created a floating dynamic object surrounded by a geometric haze like a cloud in the trees. The wooden platform rests discreetly on the surrounding trees, hovering three meters above the ground. The only element connecting it to the ground is the volume of the stairs. Up in the canopy, the “cloud” is generated by a light-independent structure made of steel tubes and suspended with cables. A series of vapor diffusers puff a refreshing mist creating it’s own cool microclimate in the torrid midsummer day. At night the lighting systems creates an orange halo effect.During the day, the structure stands out from its surroundings, bringing into light the beauty of the area.
2019 // Milestone Barbershop refurbishing
A traditional barbershop, designed exclusively for men, receives a facelift once it changes location by implementing a new and fresh concept.
The most relevant aspect of a barbershop is the activity itself, the show offered by expert barbers. Therefore, the whole space was organized in such a manner that it emphasizes the working area: it occupies the center of the room and is formed of the barbers table and a waiting bench. A mirror suspended above the table highlights the artistic process that can also be admired by pedestrians.
A strong contrast is created by joining together the existing materials' roughness and the delicate texture of the new elements. The technical atmosphere generated by this association between rough and smooth illustrates the nature of the activity taking place.
2016 // Casa K
The site is in a very special place, a village of a few hundred people that prouds itself with 14 protected buildings, listed as monuments. From this point of view it was essential to conserve a consistent and historically faithful overall image of the settlement. However, the aim was to bring some contemporary elements into the architecture and ultimately into the lifestyle of the future residents. So the large volume is broken in two similarly proportioned ones and there is an articulating strip of glass that runs through the roof and down to the ground to mark the main entrance area.
2016 // TIFF Sign
Atelier MASS is an architectural studio based in Cluj, established in March 2011. It was formed by four friends, former colleagues who shared the same passion for projects that expand the boundaries of professional practice and have been working together on competitions for several years.
SPECIFIC
Their design work seeks open collaborations with people from other fields to achieve better solutions in different architecture related areas. Their guideline is the common interest in researching the Romanian urban environment and identifying small scale ways to improve it.
ROMANIAN DESIGN WEEK APPEARANCES
2019 // Installation for music festival (Summer Well)
For our first collaboration with Summer Well festival, we are bringing back the playful experience of a tree house from where you can overlook the festival grounds and the impressive view of the lake or simply relax and gaze at the sky.
We created a floating dynamic object surrounded by a geometric haze like a cloud in the trees. The wooden platform rests discreetly on the surrounding trees, hovering three meters above the ground. The only element connecting it to the ground is the volume of the stairs. Up in the canopy, the “cloud” is generated by a light-independent structure made of steel tubes and suspended with cables. A series of vapor diffusers puff a refreshing mist creating it’s own cool microclimate in the torrid midsummer day. At night the lighting systems creates an orange halo effect.During the day, the structure stands out from its surroundings, bringing into light the beauty of the area.
2019 // Milestone Barbershop refurbishing
A traditional barbershop, designed exclusively for men, receives a facelift once it changes location by implementing a new and fresh concept.
The most relevant aspect of a barbershop is the activity itself, the show offered by expert barbers. Therefore, the whole space was organized in such a manner that it emphasizes the working area: it occupies the center of the room and is formed of the barbers table and a waiting bench. A mirror suspended above the table highlights the artistic process that can also be admired by pedestrians.
A strong contrast is created by joining together the existing materials' roughness and the delicate texture of the new elements. The technical atmosphere generated by this association between rough and smooth illustrates the nature of the activity taking place.
The 'backstage' area is designed strictly from a functional point of view with simple, yet resistant, materials such as OSB that also manages to bring warmth to the space.
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design
The two apartments are next to each other and they take up the entire top floor of an unremarkable, but nice 1930s house. The client intends to use it as a protocol accommodation or to rent it, so the design had to be eye-catching but still rational and without excesses. There were a few modifications in partitioning to create a better distribution of the spaces for the 2nd bedroom, modify the bathrooms etc. The kitchen was opened up and became part of a warm and welcoming living room, separated by a custom-built counter covered in micro cement with painted glass top. Most of the furniture are ready-made items from a variety of sources. The tiles were brought from France. The new herringbone floor was made from oak by a Bucharest company. Where it was possible, we left the old brickwork exposed and painted white for a dramatic effect.
2018 // LAVA coffee table
LAVA coffee table was created from a continuous surface, with no other components, a single fluid line. It is a contemporary design piece of furniture which gives the impression of a weightless wave that ensures its stability. It is made out of painted fiberglass making the table lightweight and very durable. Putting several tables together we can create surprising combinations. Different colors as well as mate of shiny finishing make this table suitable for all kinds scenarios and settings.
2017 // Electric Castle
2018 // Two 1930s apartments interior design
The two apartments are next to each other and they take up the entire top floor of an unremarkable, but nice 1930s house. The client intends to use it as a protocol accommodation or to rent it, so the design had to be eye-catching but still rational and without excesses. There were a few modifications in partitioning to create a better distribution of the spaces for the 2nd bedroom, modify the bathrooms etc. The kitchen was opened up and became part of a warm and welcoming living room, separated by a custom-built counter covered in micro cement with painted glass top. Most of the furniture are ready-made items from a variety of sources. The tiles were brought from France. The new herringbone floor was made from oak by a Bucharest company. Where it was possible, we left the old brickwork exposed and painted white for a dramatic effect.
2018 // LAVA coffee table
LAVA coffee table was created from a continuous surface, with no other components, a single fluid line. It is a contemporary design piece of furniture which gives the impression of a weightless wave that ensures its stability. It is made out of painted fiberglass making the table lightweight and very durable. Putting several tables together we can create surprising combinations. Different colors as well as mate of shiny finishing make this table suitable for all kinds scenarios and settings.
2017 // Electric Castle
Combining striking visual elements, mass entertainment and a Gothic setting (the ruin of 15th century Bannfy Castle) Electric Castle festival has become a complex sensorial and spatial experience, a celebration of contemporary art in its different forms: from music to architecture, design and installation.
2016 // Casa K
The site is in a very special place, a village of a few hundred people that prouds itself with 14 protected buildings, listed as monuments. From this point of view it was essential to conserve a consistent and historically faithful overall image of the settlement. However, the aim was to bring some contemporary elements into the architecture and ultimately into the lifestyle of the future residents. So the large volume is broken in two similarly proportioned ones and there is an articulating strip of glass that runs through the roof and down to the ground to mark the main entrance area.
2016 // TIFF Sign
The 14th edition of the Transylvania Film Festival (TIFF) brought a need for a specific and coherent image of the festival in order to better set it apart from the numerous events taking place in Unirii Square in Cluj. Together with the Infopoint pavilion and a series of urban objects with advertising purpose, the main intervention of our office was the Signal Tower. Measuring over 9.50 meters in height, this object reinterpreted the logo of the film festival, diving it on different faces of the prism and proposing a dynamic reading. During the night, a new scenographic effect is obtained through the interior lighting that emphasizes the specific color of the festival and through the dematerializing of the physical object of the tower in the dark.
2015 // Facade study for the Paintbrush Factory
The building of the former Paintbrush Factory that houses the contemporary art center has been partly repaired or modernized by it's current owner. Unfortunately these works were done without a coherent overview upfront. The project was born out of the owner's need to improve the thermal insulation of the outer walls. Because they were intimately familiar with the context, they managed to shift his interest from a simplistic take to a new direction: a study to pinpoint the best strategy for a visual overhaul of the exterior.
A very elaborate approach has determined three types of solutions:
1. The nostalgic version - by shaping the insulation exactly over the existing silhouette we kept the original image, except for the entrance and the top level canopy.
2. The black box version - because the cultural processes that the building houses are actually much more valuable than the building itself, we put the accent on the former, disregarding the latter.
3. The face-lift version - is in the same spirit as the previous version, but it brings a new, contemporary, powerful yet delicate statement of what the Factory has become in the present time.
2015 // Scenography for Electric City
Electric City was conceived as a promo-event of the Electric Castle Festival. Everything that happens at the Banffy Castle in Bontida moves for one night to the city, into some of the most modern structures of Cluj - Cluj Arena and the new Multifunctional Hall. The scenography for this event had to consider the large number of people attending, so the objects were concentrated into 'islands' to leave as much free space as possible. Additionally, they would double as signals for particular areas, illumination or just relaxation. The low budget imposed the re-use of about 3200 white beer boxes and about 60 neon lights. Only a part of the pillows were eventually realized for this event. Outside, the public space between the Hall and the Arena was marked out by the star-shaped signals that introduced the atmosphere of the interior.
