AASSTTIINN

AASSTTIINN Presents Vertical Drift, Its Latest Chapter at Downtown Design’s Editions 2025

A poetic exploration of movement between earth and sky, where handcrafted objects by Emrooz Studio and Studio Honarvar transcend function and become vessels of transformation.

Dubai, November 2025: Highlighting the essence of Iranian craftsmanship, AASSTTIINN returns to Downtown Design’s Editions 2025 for the third time with ‘Vertical Drift’ – a dialogue between earth and sky through collectable design. The concept, curated by Shadi Malek, reflects a journey where the physical meets the immaterial, where design becomes a language that bridges the grounded and the ethereal. AASSTTIINN, dedicated to contemporary Iranian exclusive design and soon expanding globally, highlights this year the emblematic works of Emrooz Studio and Studio Honarvar, both bridging Iranian craftsmanship with modern expression. The company, now also present in the UAE, presents each collectable as an artefact of motion, rising, dissolving, and merging into the infinite expanse above.

For Kimia Salehi and Bahador Adab, founders of AASSTTIIN, “Dubai Design Week has always been a source of inspiration for exhibits and showcases. Two years ago, in our first exhibition at Downtown Design, Nomad at Home, we invited people to embrace a more nomadic and playful approach within their spaces, encouraging mobility and adaptability in how they live. In our second exhibition—and our first time at Editions—Post Interior, we pushed beyond walls and boundaries, expanding the notion of space by bringing elements of nature inside and dissolving the line between indoors and outdoors. Now, in our third exhibition, Vertical Drift, we are transcending, rising upward, dissolving into the sky, and exploring new dimensions of spatial experience.” 

Highlights of the Exhibition 

Celestial Candleholders (“Falak”)

Formed through hand-rolled clay coils that spiral gently around a central axis, each Falak candleholder captures a rhythm, earthly and cosmic, a quiet echo of the celestial dance of planets and stars. The name ‘Falak’, meaning The Celestial Spheres, emerges from this connection between form and motion, between craft and cosmos.  

Scaled to the human body, the smaller evoking the innocence of a child, the tallest aligning with an adult’s gaze, they gather like sentient figures in silent conversation. Their matte surfaces and muted tones hold a quiet luminosity, as if light itself rests within the clay. When a candle is lit, the gesture becomes a tender ritual, an awakening of these sculptural guardians who, in their stillness, mirror the vastness above.  

Hollow L Sofa:

Hollow L is a dialogue between mass and void. Its solid surface defines a functional volume, while the empty space within creates an immaterial and contemplative dimension. The contrast between the smooth outer surface and the worn interior texture reveals a balance between precision and incompleteness – a point where material is both controlled and in transformation. 

Positioned at the intersection of sculpture and furniture, this piece questions the boundaries between function and form. It is an invitation to experience materiality both as a physical reality and as a conceptual idea. 

Holie Armchair

The Holie Armchair, crafted by Studio Honarvar from a paper composite material that evokes the deep, sparkling blue of lapis stone, reimagines the relationship between sculpture and function, blurring the lines between art and utility. Its seamless, looped silhouette draws the body inward, inviting one to inhabit the hollow at its core, a space where emptiness becomes an active presence. Here, the notion of “void” rises above absence, transforming into a source of comfort and contemplation. Here, form and formlessness coexist, weight and lightness, movement and stillness, offering a moment to reflect. 

The Third Chapter: Vertical Drift 

“In Vertical Drift, I explore how objects can trace a passage between earth and sky,” says Malek. “The collection of seven candle holders and a lapis chair arose from observing the sky’s stratified layers and the rhythm of cosmic dance. Each candle holder corresponds to a layer of sky, carrying light as a fragile monument of elevation. The lapis chair anchors presence through its function, rooting the installation in the earthly realm while its deep blue hue reflects the sky above. This constellation of forms moves beyond utility, inviting reflection on how stillness can hold motion and matter can gesture toward the immaterial. Vertical Drift is a study in perception, a vertical choreography from the tangible toward the infinite.” 

Vertical Drift is a conversation between art and design, spotlighting the idea of exclusivity, collectable and sculptural pieces, through form, texture, and proportion. This showcase by AASSTTIINN is created to evoke a sense of elevation, emotional, and contemplative, inviting viewers to experience design as an act of spiritual ascent. Here, the terrestrial and celestial coexist, reminding us of that creation, at its essence, is a conversation between what anchors us and what liberates us. 

Visit AASSTTIINN at Booth E18 in Editions. 

ACCESS THE COMPLETE PRESS KIT HERE

(Link will be updated with the latest details on the first day of Downtown Design 2025)