Stillness — In Conversation With Cédric Etienne of Studio Corkinho

In recent times, people might find they’re settling into a slower-paced rhythm, where freedom is limited.  There could not be a better time to introduce one of Studio Corkinho’s latest projects: the STILL Room.

The name reflects the fundamental ethos underpinning the project which expresses how stillness can be curated and perceived. Located at Noorderpershuis, a classified heritage building near the harbour of Antwerp was transformed into an architecture of silence.

Not only does the STILL room hold a selection of Studio Corkinho designs, but it also highlights their shared level of meaning. The STILL room devotes itself to the understanding of the dynamics of silence and how inner balance can be lived. Like craftsmanship results in timeless objects, the monastic cell makes time erode into a calming void, a silent atmosphere to contemplate in the now and here. The entire space becomes a sanctuary or temple for introspection.

Besides the STILL room, Studio Corkinho plans to curate other experiences of stillness. Whether in the form of a study room, lectures, art debates, residency afternoons or ritualized ceremonies. The STILL room becomes a meeting space for shared knowledge and reconnection with our true nature.

Nela Riessova: NR
Cédric Etienne: CE

NR: How did you come across the project of STILL room? Was it planned, or has that happened by accident?

CE: For more than ten years, I founded theMoodstudio, a show production agency designing settings for brands like Giorgio Armani, YSL, L'Oréal Produits de Luxe...

Besides our productions, Studio Corkinho started to grow bit by bit.

In the summer of 2018, I bumped into a maritime heritage building in Antwerp's Harbour, where I felt a profound connection.

At the end of 2018, I made an important decision to reflect on my more profound purpose.

My intuition led me to stop my activity as a show producer/set designer and take a contemplative pause to connect with my true Self.

I needed to slow down to listen in a profound way to the messages of life.

The space had been abandoned for over 20 years. It was a kind of metaphor for myself.

I could feel its sacred potential throughout the massive dust, screaming for being "cleaned." I devoted myself entirely to the re-purposing of the building and, at the same time, experienced this cleanse inside of me as well.

In no time, I felt this space was the perfect field to sign our architectural manifesto.

In parallel with recovering this monumental body's beauty, I decided to go on a creative pilgrimage to find bare silence in sacred architecture.

After two years of research and profound work, the STILL room came to fruition.

Looking back, there was no real plan. By allowing myself to give space for an introspective rebirth, I learned to listen at a deeper level to reset and connect from a refreshed creative mind.

NR: I read somewhere that you fully dedicated yourself to the study of the architecture of silence. Did you come to understand the key elements or conditions of silence?

CE: Silence has always fascinated me.

I've always loved to be on my own, to connect with the potential of "nothingness."

During my several journeys to Japan, I educated myself to listen to silence, spending days in silence with Buddhist monks to meditate and discover the endless energetic presence of silence.

After these experiences, I dedicated my travels to study sacred spaces how the Great Masters of Architecture succeeded to "build" silence.

For five years, I visited & studied more than 100 sacred spaces to understand the "conditions of silence": like monasteries, temples, churches, cathedrals, dismissed cloisters, religious buildings, Japanese tea houses but also museums, installations which I consider "sacred" as well ...

Silence is a universal concept but has endless morphologies & interpretations.

It's a very personal and reflective phenomenon, making it so unique and inspiring.

The creative process is continuously enriching.

I absorb from what I experience and try to channel in new contexts.

From all these visits, I have collected sketches and notes to compare and evaluate silence's versatility. I wrote a "mémoire" for our studio about the "architectural conditions of silence," as a kind of manifesto, which we applied to design our STILL room.

STILL is the translation of the critical elements or conditions of silence.

This space allows us to bring silence in confrontation with humans, understand their experience, evaluate their emotions, and imagine new scenarios in different contexts where we forget the silence or stillness of our everyday lives.

STILL acts as a real-life lab to contemporize the energy of stillness. It feels very satisfying when people come back to STILL for a specific experience of being in a moment of contemplative, energizing or inspiring rest.

NR: Did any particular travels or experiences of yours shaped the design of the STILL room?

CE: Travelling to Japan has been very inspiring.

The visits to Traditional Japanese Teahouses & Ryokans have deeply touched me. How the space is organized, according to the rhythmic proportion of a ritual. How the negative space called "ma" becomes a field of energetic potential. Studying the floorplan of over 300 ryokans, experiencing tea ceremonies and silent meditations will always remain in my design unconsciousness.

But you can't export a traditional teahouse from Japan to Europe or anywhere else. My fascination is translating this "Law of Emptiness" into a universal scenario that transcends space and time.

I proceeded this Pilgrimage of stillness in Europe, where I experienced true serenity when visiting the wooden chapel in the Bavarian forest designed by John Pawson, or the Bruder Klaus Field Chapel by Peter Zumthor, sleeping in a monastic cell at Le Couvent de La Tourette by Le Corbusier. Also, closer to home in Belgium, when discovering the Roosenberg Abbey designed by Dom Van der Laan. These are some of the most intense sacred places in terms of architectural silence.

NR: These days, noise is all around us most of the time and silence might make some people uncomfortable. How do you make silence attractive?

CE: I aim to elevate stillness from a contemplative atmosphere. Where people feel inspired to open the doors to a deeper level of well-beingness.

What's the energy of a space?

How will space make your body move from the inside?

With silence, I found a very inspiring field. If we don't pay attention, we are all absorbed by an excess of input.

According to my experience, silence is not purely the absence of noise, rather the lack of distraction. Imagine it as a diet of distraction - to connect with simplicity, to learn how to make those joys less external and temporary, like silences between the notes in music or pauses between words in sentences.

I seek to manipulate these conditions of silence to shape "stillness," where the mind travels inwards, connecting with the heart and experiencing the feeling of "timelessness."

Stillness brings you "nowhere" where you've never been.

"Going nowhere" is not turning your back on the world; it's about stepping away now and then so that you can see the world more clearly and love it more deeply.

In an age of speed, nothing can be more refreshing than slowing down.

In an age of distraction, nothing can feel more luxurious than experiencing the now.

In an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than recharging through stillness.

Silence is beautiful in itself. It's just the way how society looks at it; the "push" of being busy while we all urge for a moment of rest.

Inspired by a strong narrative about emotional well being, we seek to conceptualize silence or stillness into the atmosphere and connect the experience to daily rituals.

Silence as a source of focus empowerment, rebirth and self-care.

NR: What stillness means to you, and how do you practice it?

CE: Stillness is the experience of the timeless now.

It's a deep connection with inner peace.

And a complete disconnection of the mind.

Stillness results in deep trust with the existence of life. To become deeply aware and be in full connection with your intuition.

I practice it every day through transcendental meditation, breathwork, mantras or body movement in the morning, and every time before a creative challenge to enter in deep concentration.

But stillness can also be found while walking in nature, cycling, reading a book, listening to music, being in the full creative process. It's a process that happens inside when you completely switch off the mind... this feeling of "effortlessness."

NR: How do you spend time these days?

CE: I am pretty disciplined to wake up earlier to follow a morning ritual, starting with meditation, physical exercise, and finally entering some in-depth study reading a book.

We are pretty secluded at the studio, so even with Covid, we can continue working on projects and developing new work in our atelier. I am dedicating weekends to quality time with family. And for as much as I can, I try to stay in touch with friends by having a walk in nature or going cycling outdoor.

STILL Room’s Floorplan

NR: What are you reading at the moment?

CE: I just finished the study of 300 floorplans of Japanese Traditional Teahouses and Ryokans.

Now I turned my fascination to the work of Egyptian modernist Hassan Fathy.

As well as on an Essay about the use of metaphors and void by Kazuo Shinohara.

On a spiritual level, I am reading the last book written by Deepak Chopra entitled Total meditation.

NR: What is next for Cédric Etienne?

CE: 2020 was a year of transition for Studio Corkinho.

Thanks to our STILL room, we allowed ourselves to take time to shape our foundation.

We are now working on a project in contemplative hospitality, located in the Portuguese cork fields close by Melides. A Belgian artist asked us to design his private studio in Lisbon, and a Belgian art collector mandated us to redesign his penthouse rooftop terrace into a secret garden. We also created a tatami installation for Hagius, a Berlin-based well-being art space.

Besides, we are developing a concept that we called Campus Still is a holistic wellbeing retreat destined to build a creative community activated by healers & facilitators to propose workshops/therapeutic programmes/residencies around purposeful living, craftsmanship and focus empowerment.

See it as a monastic farm or ensemble of several spaces composed of an energy pharmacy, a zen garden, a multi-purpose patio, several still rooms, a creative library, workshops, work/meetings spaces and living units in order to welcome residents for longer stays.

Besides working on spaces, we will develop new collections of objects made out of new cork compositions.

We will work on new ideas to develop our collection of olfactive objects in collaboration with AOIRO.

Finally, we will launch a collection of architectural surfaces made out of our cork composite destined to inspire architects looking for a patina of stillness.

Collaboration between Studio Corkinho & Aoiro:
HAKUDO RAIN —an olfactory ceremony set.

Studio Corkinho is a multi-disciplinary design practice based in Antwerp, Belgium, aiming to change people's perception and awareness of objects and spaces that deserve attention for their unique values. Furthermore, the studio designs limited editions within the fields of objects, furniture, and creates contemplative atmospheres for interiors and architecture. 

STILL Room images by Piet-Albert Goethals
Courtesy of Studio Corkinho

Cédric Etienne of Studio Corkinho