A suspended grove of bamboo baskets and steel trunks explores the balance between heritage and innovation through light, texture and movement.

Set within the palm-lined courtyard of Dubai Design District, Woven Forest by Designlab Experience unfolds as a sculptural landscape where nature and design intertwine. A constellation of bamboo baskets is suspended above a timber platform, supported by sleek steel trunks that rise like trees to form a woven canopy.

During the day, sunlight filters through the lattice of the baskets, casting shadows that ripple across the wooden floor and surrounding space. As night falls, the grove transforms through a series of carefully placed uplights that illuminate the canopy from below, turning it into a glowing crown that hovers above the courtyard. This duality of experience; one shaped by nature and the other by illumination, reveals how design can transform with time, mood and atmosphere.

The installation is carefully oriented to respond to its site. Its axis is subtly tilted to align with the natural pedestrian flow and the positioning of nearby palm trees, allowing it to merge seamlessly into its surroundings. Bold red benches are arranged symmetrically along a central pathway while the subtle rotation of each steel trunk introduces a rhythm that mirrors the balance between architectural precision and natural evolution.

Rooted in Designlab Experience’s regional heritage yet expressed through a contemporary lens, Woven Forest stands as both a meditation and a message: that heritage and innovation are not opposing forces but part of the same creative continuum.

About Designlab Experience:

Designlab Experience is an architecture and creative studio based in Dubai and Riyadh, led by Co-Founders Hibah Albakree and Mootassem El Baba, with Lead Architect and Partner Marwan Maalouf. The studio specialises in transformative architectural and artistic experiences, bringing together a global team of designers, artists, engineers and strategists. Their work spans urban spaces, large-scale installations and immersive environments, pushing the boundaries of design, architecture and technology to create spaces that challenge the familiar and inspire connection.