A fiery red cloud cascades down from the ceiling, demanding attention in an otherwise sparsely 'decorated' room. Accompanied by a second gossamer sculpture that resembles dried flower buds or a cluster of mycelium, the ensemble adds a touch of the wild to the gallery space of The Lab in Copenhagen. It is then the other disparate furniture, lighting fixtures and sculptures in the gallery that offer a clue on how an explosion of flowers has taken over this post-industrial landscape. These artefacts, varying in form, material and visual language, are part of this year’s Mindcraft Project, on view from October 2 – 5, 2025.

Curated by designer Pil Bredahl, the enticing assemblage is arranged within the space not with a hierarchy or affixed order in mind, but seemingly with the intent of allowing juxtapositions to occur rather instinctively—ceramic sculptures in regimented patterns complement a sculptural piece that looks like it could be part of a fae ritual; the cold metal of a bench in the middle of the gallery is offset by three stools moulded in wood.

Led by the Copenhagen Design Agency (CDA) with Kristian Kastoft and Anders Kongskov as co-directors, the Mindcraft Project is described as “a platform for explorative and experimental design from Denmark”, spotlighting material innovation and meticulous craftsmanship from emerging and established Danish designers to address “future challenges and opportunities, and inspire new ways of thinking, making and living.” It has, in previous editions, such as 2024 edition curated by Maria Bruun and the 2023 edition curated by Sara Martinsen, attempted to stay true to this position, with exhibitions highlighting works that operate at the intersections of the handcrafted and the machinic, the natural and the artificial. Design, in these settings and showcases, is an intermediary that often instead rebels against dichotomies.

This year’s participants—spanning furniture designers, lighting designers and artists—platform a similar disposition. The showcase this year keenly dissects how embedded and intrinsic natural geometry and physical laws are in the ethos of Denmark's design language, and in its most unique design productions, particularly from young designers.

Interestingly, for a showcase drawing from or commenting upon natural systems, the works on display feel somewhat sombre in their disposition, with a visual likeness that skews towards minimalism. The intention, as Bredahl tells STIR, was more to mimic patterns and systems rather than forms. She notes, “I see it a bit like mimicry, that is, when some species imitate other species' structural features to improve their own life.”

In that light, it is especially intriguing to consider Danish ceramic artist Jeppe Søndergaard’s Bonds. Meant to reference English cross-bond brick patterns, the visual language of the works is altogether rationalist. The idea of alluding to natural systems takes hold when one considers how Søndergaard treats his material, and in a submission to weathering. “By firing at high temperatures, the materiality of the brick is set free to transform as it pleases. What was once rigid becomes playful forms and surfaces, returning to the natural state it came from,” he notes in the official release.

Another seeming incongruity in the nature-inspired showcase is the seating design by Danish designer Kasper Kjeldgaard. The Bench is composed of milled solid aluminium rods in recurring striations, while Small Ones is comprised of aluminium casings doubling up as lighting, suspended from thin steel wires adjacent to the bench. The modular designs are influenced by and revel in the liberty of form afforded by repetition. Furniture designer Kasper Kyster similarly relies on modularity for his lighting design collection, Strata. The different variations on view, including floor lamps and pendants, are made from acrylic sheets and steel brackets, allowing users to add or remove modules at will.

Moving from conceptual abstractions of natural principles lending form, one is prompted to look at architect Anne Dorthe Vester’s designs, RO stools, crafted from seven layers of pressure-moulded veneer joined by a single stainless steel bracket. Both in terms of form and material, while not particularly novel with the stools, work as a counterpoint to the steel bench by Kjeldgaard within the exhibition space, creating avenues for impromptu discourse. As Dorthe Vester notes, the works demonstrate how “industrial processes can coexist with a more crafted, expressive character”, emphasising the versatility of natural materials for sustainable design. The most 'natural-seeming' objects on display, as mentioned earlier, are the flower-like textile installations of Lærke Lillelund, who uses traditional Japanese ‘shibori’ techniques on synthetic polyester organza and silk for the designs. The textile artist similarly notes a fascination with modular systems (rather than alluding to the grand design of nature) for the works.

With only ten designers exhibiting, the small-scale nature of both the exhibition and the designs is especially worth noting. Each of the participants, foregoing aestheticisation of the natural world through more formal biomimicry, focuses on a diversity of materialities and the versatility of what craft can mean today, meaning that the works attempt to repudiate the logic of mass production. They are the result of slow processes, of a considerate ethic for design. In this vein, the show offers a fitting encapsulation of emerging questions for designers in a world saturated with products that seem to rely on visual appeal alone.

Take Forest Sphere, Little Blue, for instance. The totemic structures by architect Cecilie Bendixen and designer Laura Baruël, serving no singular function, were first conceived as a means to test the potential of raw bio-gene materials. The duo uses textiles in these sculptures, alluding to a notion of ephemerality through which they wish to reconceive the built environment. Glass artist Morten Klitgaard's Aragonit, alternatively, operates with similar principles. For the conceptual artwork, the artist presents five glass objects that resemble twigs, the result of a special technique where finely crushed local stone is sifted onto the surface of the glass whilst in molten form. Speaking about the plurality of voices that add to this year's showcase, Bredahl notes, “I think the Danish design landscape has always been shaped by the craftsmanship being very grounded in the knowledge of materials and the strive to bring this knowledge into the production in order to make things of the best quality."

For the Mindcraft Project 2025, then, a spirit of experimentation, of considering technology and nature in tandem, is key. “We believe that explorative and experimental design practices serve as a kind of fundamental research in our society, which is very valuable,” Kongskov and Kastoft state. The liberty of adopting an experimental position for the designers allows them to question the state of design rather than impose a particular stance. It is precisely this liminality—the space between being mindful and well-crafted—where Kongskov and Kastoft hope Danish design situates itself, now and in the future.