Daalaan is an abstract playground in which visitors can interact by playing in and wandering through the space. Here, people are invited to revisit a utopian world, which they were once familiar with as children – a space without borders and judgement.
Daalaan in Urdu, one of the official languages spoken in Pakistan, means “courtyard”, essentially a space without doors. The installation Daalaan is a space created by Lattoo stools and silkscreens. The stools were made to attract people to spin them, wait for them to stop, and then spin them again. The silkscreens dance and sway with the gentle breeze – when people walk through the space it is as if they are playing hide-and-seek behind the screens.
The Daalaan design team consists of six young Pakistanis, who were motivated to bring the true image of Pakistan to the world. They were inspired by Pakistani craftsmanship and design, and came up with a version that is functional in the contemporary sense, as well as being aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
The stool tops are made of wood or metal, decorated in different patterns, crafted by Coalesce Design Studios, co-founded by Salman Jawed. The silkscreens are all handmade with natural dye by the Islamabad-based textile designer Hina Fancy.
“There is a plan to first create and compile a book on the cultural games of Pakistan,” says designer Faiza Adamjee, “and we would love to create a real playground for both mental and physical interaction that is much needed in our society today.”
Daalaan hopes not only to be a medium to evoke nostalgia, but also an open platform that encourages conversations, ideas and changes. It wants visitors to ask themselves – how have you changed and how can you go back to a more innocent time when all inhibitions were left behind?
