When exploring the Finnish hall at the Grüne Woche Fair, it’s worth paying attention to detail. The perimeter of the restaurant area is decked with eye-catching indoor greenery displays by Laura Väinölä, a designer working with natural materials and plants.
Laura Väinölä, the designer from Flora & Laura, has a solid background in graphic and other design. She was awarded the Design Forum Finland prize for Young Designer of the Year in 2016. A frequent common denominator of her works is often plants, be it a case of spatial installation, photography set or event design.
When planning the indoor greenery for the Finnish hall, Väinölä chose Kekkilä’s Green Boxes, representing Finnish design, as the basis of her displays. The Kekkilä Green Boxes were launched less than a year ago, and their metallic, pared-down and stylish design has aroused much interest. The Green Box lends itself to creating various displays in one’s own style. The plants are used to create a certain ambience, exemplified by the result of Väinölä’s work in Finland’s hall.
“The Kekkilä Green Boxes raise the plants higher than is possible with traditional plant pots. A lot of people move around the exhibition area, and this way the plantings are beautifully on display,” Väinölä comments.
Väinölä worked with hasan & partners on the concept photos of the Finnish hall, exuding Finnish wild nature and used also on this ausderwildnis.fi website.
“I wanted to bring out this same wildness through forest-themed plantings for the exhibition hall, but at the same time focusing on the forest and clean nature. Finnish flora has a strong presence in the plantings,” Väinölä says.
“The final plant choices will only be decided on site, but I’m planning to utilise conifers, grasses, mosses, low-growing shrubs and edible elements. I also want to highlight oats, which is an important export article for Finland,” she adds.
The tables at the opening ceremony of the fair will also contain edible statues designed by Väinölä.
More information on Laura Väinölä’s earlier works: www.floraandlaura.com
Green Boxes are part of the Creative Garden product family created by Kekkilä and Pentagon Design, permitting interior design with plants in many types of spaces. They are suitable for both indoor and covered outdoor spaces, and some may be combined with elegant plant supports and lighting. More information here (in Finnish) www.kekkila.fi/kauppa