Nests: An Ode to Domesticity

Over the last 20 years, Manuel and Isabelle Der Hagopian have built various dwellings across Singapore, Vietnam, and Switzerland to house their lives and redefine their domesticity as a fundamental need. Each ’nest’ arises from intimate conversations between them and the spaces. They depict how these spaces are not only shaped by individual tastes and interests but also through the sensibilities informed by surrounding communities and cultures, across cities. ‘Nests’ features six of these dwellings — Seng Poh, TB80, Bi Khi Ni, Thi Sach, Beaumont, and Diablay De — as seen through the lens of a frequent collaborator Khoo Guo Jie, supplemented with accompanying texts and drawings. Presented like a set of ‘material swatch’ housed in a cardboard sleeve, the design of each book features specific combinations of material, ink, binding, and construction that translates the narratives and character of each ‘nest’ in print and book form.

“We understand each nest as a living organism that includes the people, the places and the things that inhabit it as well as the daily rituals of its maintenance in a specific context. In this sense, the domestic space is not a static or inert thing. It is where life happens, where a lot of effort and work must occur in order to reenact life day after day.” – Manuel and Isabelle

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