Plastique Fantastique’s Twin Minigagarin will land at the Canberra Airport departures foyer, where travelers from all over the world can rest inside as if they have stopped over at a space station during their journey.

Twin Minigagarin investigates urban and social issues in a playful manner.

Playing can serve here as metaphor to intervene in public space: an iterative design approach that embraces chance, accidents and a multitude of participants. On the other hand, playing is meant quite literally. The pneumatic structure is reminiscent of places, objects or architecture which most people have vivid and positive memories of.

The futuristic look of Twin Minigagarin invites people to enter, have fun and be active in public space. Its tactile and aesthetic qualities provoke immediate and sensual reactions, regardless of people’s education, age or cultural background.

Twin Minigagarin embodies appropriate and respectful use of materials. The structure is reusable and modular, allowing the individual pods to be reconfigured and enabling a meaningful connection to the site.

Installation and deinstallation are rapid and require minimal labor. The structure is packed in a box for shipping to other locations to be re-installed. Anchoring is only by sandbags; sand is later donated to schools.

The site is returned to its original condition and the installation continues its cycle. The compact shipping profile means minimal transportation emissions.

After their layover at Canberra Airport the twins will continue their journey, activating sites in cities all over the world.

Designer Yena Young, and the Plastique Fantastique installations, are guests of the festival thanks to generous support from the Goethe Institut, the Capital Airport Group and the Delegation of the European Union.