Carpets for the residence of the Swiss consul in Rio

Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in Brazil after São Paulo and the capital of the state of the same name. It is located on Guanabara Bay in the south-east of the country. The name River of January is based on a mistake made by the navigator Gaspar de Lemos, who discovered the bay on 1 January 1502 and thought it was the mouth of a large river. Around 6.21 million people live in the administrative urban area. The metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro has around 13.3 million inhabitants. This makes Rio de Janeiro one of the world's megacities. 

Swiss designer Frédéric Dedelley was commissioned by the Swiss Confederation to remodel the residence of the Swiss Consulate in Rio de Janeiro.

Frédéric Dedelley (*1964) studied product design at the écal in Lausanne and at the ArtCenter Europe in Vevey. He founded his studio in Zurich in 1995. His work includes furniture design, interior design and projects at the interface between design and art. 

"Before I opened my own studio in Zurich in 1995, I focussed increasingly on furniture design. This is still one of the main areas of my work today, together with interior architecture and exhibition design. I see my profession as an interplay of form, function, material, construction and emotion. Components that are always weighted differently and always lead to new forms of expression."

People meet in the residence for negotiations, aperitifs and festive occasions. Frédéric Dedelley wanted to create a Swiss environment in which the culture of the host country could be felt everywhere.

The furniture, textiles and light fittings are typical Swiss design, and the materials and craftsmanship meet the highest standards. For the colours and patterns, however, Dedelley was inspired by the surroundings, for example by Roberto Burle-Marx's Copacabana Promenade. All the furnishing elements can be rearranged and regrouped as required, from an intimate setting for a confidential conversation to an auditorium for a film screening.

Ruckstuhl's in-house customising department develops individual carpets for bespoke project requirements, such as for the residence in Rio. This can be a modification of an existing Ruckstuhl carpet, such as a different pile height, a new combination of materials or other customisations. Ruckstuhl also realises completely new developments of carpets so that they meet the requirements and wishes unconditionally. 

Customer-specific requirements in terms of colour, material, design and construction can be implemented to create an individual carpet composition - starting with just one carpet. There are hardly any design limits to the visions. The creative possibilities range from the traditional elements of the weaving trade to the latest robot and CAD technology, right through to customised wishes regarding manufacture and finishing.

In order to faithfully reproduce Frédéric Dedelley's specifications for representative use, the colour blends of mottled virgin wool yarns were dyed in the Emmental and processed on the tufting robot in Ruckstuhl's Langenthal factory into high-quality unique rugs according to special specifications.

The result is two works of art that combine Swiss design language with the vibrant joie de vivre of Brazil.

Photos: MCA Estúdio, Rio de Janeiro
Design: Frédéric Dedelley
Client: Swiss Confederation, Federal Office for Buildings BBL

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