Imaginative and Otherworldly

Imagine the look of USM’s iconic furniture system: precise, modular, quietly rigorous. Now picture it wrapped in painted trees, abstract hues and folding screens festooned with hand-painted scenes. That is the combination artist Olaf Hajek has created for the German brand’s Marylebone space during Frieze week, on through 19 December.

Titled ‘Nomads’, the installation is Hajek’s interpretation of domestic space, bringing together USM Modular Furniture with his own artworks and wallcoverings launched with Christopher Farr Cloth last spring. Four curated, domestic settings combine 13 new paintings by Hajek, created exclusively for USM, with screens and backdrops of richly patterned, hand-painted wallpapers for an enchanting visual feast.

Celebrated for creating vibrant displays for a roster of brands including Hermès, Fortnum & Mason and Diptyque, Hajek was asked to experiment with the interplay of his own artistic language and the modular, graphic nature of USM’s systems. Hajek’s first instinct was to push against it: “I see very minimalistic architectural ideas (with USM), and so I was thinking I should do something completely opposite,” he says. 

Though there is a clear contrast aesthetically, the fluid aspect of the installation is in tune with the flexibility of USM’s products, which evolve and offer endless configurations to suit a space or a moment. To start, Hajek saw a kinship with the temporary nature of a tent, leading to the concept of ‘Nomads’. To him, each part of the installation is like a miniature set, or “little stages where something wonderful can happen”.

Using the exuberant colour palette and whimsical silhouettes that have become his calling card, Hajek’s paintings were produced on paper using watercolour, which he treats as a deliberate loss of control. “I wanted to be completely free, emotional, and intuitive,” he says. Paper allows no going back, so every mistake stays, and that is the appeal, he says. “I want to be surprised by it.”

The result is charming and unexpected. Trees of Wonder wallpaper from Hajek’s collection rises from a green base, rendering USM units as a kind of garden bed. Another blue abstract wallpaper, Dancing Vines, is the backdrop for a nomadic lounge sectioned off by red USM shelving and adorned with Hajek’s framed paintings. His Dancing Parade designs sit on opposite wall, accented by orange and brown USM pieces, while a folding screen acts as a way of passing from one living space to the next.

The nomadic concept is drawn from Hajek’s own life experiences with other cultures, while his distinctive hand-painted work has a surreal quality that one might find in a vintage children’s storybook. He describes his art as possessing “a universal language” – one that draws from symbolism, folklore and storytelling from anywhere and everywhere. “I always loved the idea that the whole world can be my oyster,” he explains. His guiding philosophy is simple: “the power of simplicity and the imperfection of beauty.” 

London, he suggests, is the right place for an experiment. ‘Nomads’ shows the versatility of USM Modular Furniture in an artistic and decorative context, the contrast between Hajek’s art and the construct and style of USM bringing both to life in an unexpected way.

Nomads 14 October – 19 December

USM

12 Cramer Street 

London, W1