Viennese Reflections
with Laura Frediani#reflection #space #light
GUESTS: Amy Estermann (RE-REFLECTION), Claudia Frediani (FREDIANE.space), ...
In architecture, reflection is more than a visual phenomenon, it is a spatial strategy. Reflective surfacesdistort, multiply, conceal and reveal. By bending light and redirecting vision, they unsettle form, openingspace totransformation and new questions. It is not only reflection; redirected light itself can changespatial experience, shaping atmosphere and perception in subtle but powerful ways.
Sometimes these effects are intentional, designed to manipulate vision or amplify space. Other times, they occur by chance. Reflection and light behaviour are inherent qualities in many materials, often unnoticed until a specific moment reveals them. Light streaming through a window can illuminate a smallpart of a façade opposite, unexpectedly highlighting architectural details that may otherwise gounnoticed. These accidental moments are as striking as the planned ones, reminding us thatarchitecture is always shifting, responsive and alive.
Reflection also allows us to reframe space, to see it from a new perspective. In reflection, the boundary between structure and image dissolves. A mirrored surface does not simply replicate space, it questions it, inviting doubt, projection, and possibility. Similarly, redirected light can reveal hidden geometries or create ephemeral thresholds, reshaping space in real-time.
Vienna provides fertile ground for exploration, with itsrich architectural tradition, cafés featuring mirrored interiors and grand compositions that play with light and perception. The city becomes a living laboratory for reflective experimentation.
This workshop invites participants to explore reflection and light as architectural tools. We will investigate the qualities trough collective discussions and hands-on experiments. Participants will work on individual compositions, engaging with reflective materials to create site-specific installations. By merging theory, material exploration, and embodied experience, we will reimagine space, not as fixed, but as layered, shifting, and alive.
Laura Frediani works as an architect and author in Austria and Italy, focusing on translating
socially relevant themes into architecture and their implementation in interdisciplinary projects. The exhibition space FRAU* schafft Raum in Vienna, which she designed, embodies these interests. She has contributed to various projects, including co-editing the publication Archdiploma 2021 for the Technical University of Vienna, and co-curating the accompanying exhibition at the ArchitekturzentrumVienna (MQ). Laura Frediani was invited to present the project FRAU* schafft Raum on various occasions, such as on-site talks for the Vienna Architecture Summer School 2024, the Kunst Universität Linz and an exhibition at Architektur Haus Kärnten. She is currently researching on Bernard Rudofsky and practicing architecture.
www.frediana.studio
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MEDIA: composition, drawing, writing
︎︎︎LOCATION: main location, vienna
︎︎︎TEACHING LANGUAGE: english
︎︎︎WHAT TO BRING : material that reflects that fascinates you, something that can take photos
︎︎︎REQUIREMENTS: curiosity about reflections
︎︎︎MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS: 5
︎︎︎LOCATION: main location, vienna
︎︎︎TEACHING LANGUAGE: english
︎︎︎WHAT TO BRING : material that reflects that fascinates you, something that can take photos
︎︎︎REQUIREMENTS: curiosity about reflections
︎︎︎MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS: 5