Visitors to the VIP lounge at ARCO Madrid 2020, enjoyed the delightful spectacle of LZF’s life-size Big Bird. Suspended above a brightly coloured, tiered seating area, Big Bird was resplendent in its majestic pose.

The VIP lounge at ARCO Madrid 2020 was jointly designed by two Madrid-based architecture and interior design studios: Teresa Sapey + Partners and Rafael Robledo. Both studios worked in collaboration with RED (an organisation that connects Spanish design brands with design lovers), to create a space that engaged visitors through the use of colour. Teresa Sapey conceived the VIP lounge as a vivid three-dimensional canvas, where visitors would feel part of a living artwork. A number of RED members collaborated with the project: Actiu, Akaba, Cármenes, Diabla, Enea, Equipo DRT, Estiluz, Inclass, Joquer, Kriskadecor, LZF Lamps, Nerinea, and Ondarreta.

The ARCO Madrid art fair comprises a considered collection of Spanish and international art galleries. In the fair’s recent 39th edition, art galleries from thirty countries showcased a wide array of contemporary art, by more than 1,350 artists. Organised by IFEMA (a fair, congress and leisure events consortium), ARCO Madrid is celebrated as an artistic platform for global art talent. This was the first time that Spanish design was represented at ARCO.

Excited by Big Bird’s presence in ARCO Madrid’s VIP lounge, interior designer Rocío Martínez Amoedo remarked: ‘[it was] the most recognizable piece in the VIP lounge [and] couldn’t have been better chosen. [Big Bird is] the perfect example of how to integrate a fabulous piece, without stealing the limelight of the space, giving that magical character intrinsic to all LZF creations.’

Big Bird was created by the illustrator and designer Isidro Ferrer. Built with a traditional craft technique used by Fallas artisans, known as vareta, this life-size lamp is an accomplished feat of wood craftsmanship. Hovering hummingbird-like, with its fine wooden plumage and hanging globe, Big Bird is a skilful work of contemporary sculpture.