In Sebeșu de Sus, Romania, within the Făgăraș Mountains, a temporary architectural installation was constructed in 2024 for the Făgăraș Fest. Titled “It’s oh so quiet”, the project by atelier VRAC explores themes of spatial retreat, material impermanence, and site-specific design. Developed through an ideas competition organized by Conservation Carpathia, the installation examines the intersection of festival architecture and natural environments through a restrained and context-aware approach.
It’s Oh So Quiet Installation Technical Information
- Architects1-3: Atelier VRAC
- Location: Sebeșu de Sus, Romania
- Site Area: 49 m2 | 527 Sq. Ft.
- Project Year: 2024
- Photographs: © Cristian Bădescu
We envisioned a space where architecture fades into the landscape—where slowness, silence, and local materials guide the experience.
– Cristian Bădescu & Zenaida Florea, atelier VRAC
It’s Oh So Quiet Installation Photographs
Contextual Framework: Between Festival and Landscape
The installation was designed to operate at the periphery—physically removed from the core of the festival activities, yet conceptually integrated into the broader experience of the event. This marginal positioning became a transitional zone between the human-centered event and the surrounding forested terrain. Thematically, the project responds to two intertwined objectives: preserving the Carpathian ecosystem and promoting design strategies that are environmentally responsible and locally grounded.
This context situates the work within a lineage of architectural interventions that seek to tread lightly—literally and ideologically—on the land. In contrast to installations that assert their presence, “It’s oh so quiet” performs a more nuanced role, inviting users into a meditative relationship with nature and one another, while emphasizing the ecological fragility of the setting.
Design Intent and Spatial Strategy
Rather than imposing a fixed program, the installation embraces indeterminacy. It functions simultaneously as an amphitheater, an observatory, a resting platform, and an informal gathering space. This ambiguity is not a lack of intention but a deliberate act of architectural restraint, allowing meaning to emerge through occupation rather than prescription.
A dual-facing structure defines the spatial experience. On one side, a solid wooden façade—rigid, almost defensive—establishes a boundary and shelters the interior. On the other hand, a cascading series of hay bales creates a stepped amphitheater open to the landscape. This bifurcation is central to the architectural concept: it frames a threshold between introspection and outward engagement. The act of climbing—whether via the vertical staircases embedded in the corners or through the slow ascent of the haystack—becomes a spatial ritual, encouraging users to alter their pace, perspective, and attention.
The amphitheater’s orientation toward the mountains intensifies this effect. Through geometry and scale, visitors are guided toward a posture of observation. The installation becomes less a backdrop to activity than a device for amplifying the surrounding environment.
Material Assemblage and Tectonics
The project is unapologetically local materially. Hay bales sourced from the region are deployed as both structural and experiential elements. Their texture, smell, and temporality ground the installation in agricultural practice and seasonal rhythms. These bales are not decorative—they are integral components of the architectural language, used modularly to define form and function.
Skeletal frameworks made of locally harvested timber, precisely joined but visually modest, support these. The tectonic clarity reinforces the installation’s performative role as a temporary structure: robust enough to hold, light enough to disassemble, and destined for decay or reuse.
By embracing materials that are biodegradable, non-toxic, and easily handled by hand, atelier VRAC positions construction not as a permanent imprint on the landscape but as a momentary negotiation with it. The addition of solar-powered luminous spheres enhances this ethos, introducing soft, self-sustaining light that activates the space at night without compromising its ecological sensitivity.
It’s Oh So Quiet Installation Plans
It’s Oh So Quiet Installation Image Gallery
About Atelier VRAC
Atelier VRAC is a Romania-based architectural practice led by Cristian Bădescu and Zenaida Florea. It is known for its experimental and context-sensitive approach to design. The studio explores architecture as a medium of spatial storytelling, often working with local materials, temporary structures, and participatory processes that emphasize ecological responsibility and cultural resonance.
Credits and Additional Notes
- Architects / Designers: Cristian Bădescu, Zenaida Florea – atelier VRAC
Client: Conservation Carpathia
Manufacturers / Fabricators: Hans Scherer, Sebastian Big, Oana Big, Ioana Iacob
