KRAFT – Alphabet City

The ALPHABET CITY exhibition at C-mine is a practical example demonstrating that the use of kraft cardboard is not merely experimental, but can also be effectively scaled up to create compelling spatial structures in a professional exhibition setting.

The jury on KRAFT – Alphabet City:

KRAFT impresses with a strong combination of modularity, reusability and a clear aesthetic. The architectural approach to the frame ensures that it is not the frame itself, but what is presented in it that takes centre stage. At the same time, the use of materials is minimal and recyclable, which is particularly relevant in a sector with a lot of waste. In this way, functionality, aesthetics and a more circular approach are brought together in a simple way.

What does this award mean to you?

We’ve been creating exhibitions for 40 years now, and ever since our early days we’ve strived to do so in the most innovative and sustainable way possible. Unfortunately, after an exhibition closes, valuable materials often still end up in the bin. We try to avoid this as much as possible. For us, this award is a wonderful confirmation that exhibitions can be organised sustainably in creative and innovative ways, without compromising on quality, imagination or spatial freedom.

How did the idea for this project come about?

For our exhibition about Fontrescue, we were given access to C-mine’s enormous compressor hall. The challenge was: how do you build a city there on a limited budget? During the concept phase, one of my master’s students studying scenography at Hasselt University brought in a piece of packaging cardboard for his research into 3D-printed connectors. It turned out to be a strong cardboard corner profile from the packaging industry. I immediately saw its potential for the exhibition.

What makes your project so special?

What makes our project special is the combination of surprise, lightness and structural strength. At first glance, the exhibition design looks like a delicate metal structure, but it turns out to be made entirely of cardboard. KRAFT is both an ode to construction and the science of strength: with a single, simple profile, you can build strong, complex structures and arrange them freely within a space. The limitation of using just one element thus becomes a source of surprisingly diverse possibilities.