Arrhov Frick. Ursprung. Origine/Origin

The exhibition paths is marked by twelve thematic sections, all of which refer to the design research and method of the Swedish architecture firm Arrhov Frick. They are accompanied by numerous drawings by the architects and large images by Swedish artist and photographer Mikael Olsson, who has developed a personal approach in his way of interpreting architecture, namely a radical re-vision and re-presentation through the photographic medium.

From September to December 2024, the Teatro dell'architettura Mendrisio was inhabited and experienced by the students of the Academy of Architecture attending the Arrhov Frick autumn USI Design Studio. Week by week, they set up an archive of research, projects and a series of 1:1 scale prototypes. They also collaborated in seminars and workshops with lecturers and experts in various fields, involved to produce a series of reflections and works to be displayed in the exhibition. All this has led to the creation of a sort of a veritable agora, also intervening in the environmental and spatial conditions of the Teatro dell'architettura through the site-specific installations. The purpose is to reactivate the possible relationships between the inside and outside of the building by exploring principles related to construction, reduction of energy consumption and basic fundamentals of architecture as space and light.

In this way URSPRUNG becomes a platform open to dialogue on various topics, which in turn led to further aspects to be explored with reference to architecture, in a convergence of synergies between thought and practice in a place, the Teatro dell'architettura, devoted to the dissemination of architectural and urban culture.