MuseLAB brings to life mad scientist Beasley Burette's MuseVERSE

Akin to the emotive objects that decorate the plots of animated films and cartoons and append the narrative with their construed appearances, Mumbai-based MuseLAB’s collection of furniture, toys, and artworks, touted as MuseVERSE, chronicles the erection of an empire, as envisioned by Beasley Burette, a mad fictional scientist imagined by the design studio. Alluding, albeit unwittingly, to botanist, scientist, professor, and mother Robin Wall Kimmerer’s inspiring words, ”Imagination is one of our most powerful tools. What we imagine, we can become,” the Indian design studio narrativises their recent collection with a fun-filled story that is dramatic, yet charming. This not only paves the way for ideas and projects that bely the practice of creating under pressure and for the sake of, but also promotes a trend that pivots on designing and manufacturing consciously, and with a bit of fun.

MuseLAB, based in Mumbai, India, was founded in 2012 by architects Huzefa Rangwala and Jasem Pirani. Since then, Rangwala and Pirani—formally trained architects who had previously worked in large corporations—have explored several architecture, interior design, furniture design, and product design projects, all of which are guided by the duo’s urge to explore new challenges. Employing both traditional and contemporary modes of creation and crafting, the designers have managed to build an array of tangible creations that deliver narrative-based experiences.

MuseVERSE is one such project by the firm that, in addition to fulfilling pragmatic needs, also delivers a message, a moral, through the story that guided the indentation of motifs on the chairs, consoles, cabinets, lamps, and decorative artworks making up the collection. Delineating the chain of events that led to the creation of the MuseVERSE collection, the studio shares, “The story begins in 2020 with the MuseTRIBE, our shapeshifting, genderless toys crafted in Channapatna for the Raw collaborative installation. Each MuseTRIBE toy is unique and easily distinguished from the others. We wanted to expand the MuseTRIBE realm for this year's Raw collaborative, and hence the Guardians of the MuseTRIBE were born.”

The four new characters, the Guardians of the MuseTRIBE—the Ruler, the Mystic, the Gatekeeper, and the Explorer—are shaped using Channapatna’s local craft and are designed to protect the MuseTRIBE from external threats, especially Beasley Burette, the mad scientist who wants to capture the tribe and use them to build his own universe, the MuseVERSE. In allocating the responsibility of guarding and protecting the tribe from the Beasley Burette, Rangwala and Pirani subvert or trick the mad scientist—they employ entities captured by him to construct fortifications against future invasions. This fictional tale of seizing power unjustly, and resisting, manifests tangibly through the products designed by the studio. “The MuseVERSE story is told from the perspective of this mad scientist, and we've tried to reflect his fixation through the products. The furniture is a derivation of the MuseTRIBE, where some pieces are influenced by their form and some by their texture, resulting in a diverse collection of pieces with extremely individualistic design languages,” the designers explain.

The MuseVERSE collection was born after intense sessions of brainstorming and experimenting. Each piece serves as an exploration of the material employed to build it, and the textures and design styles integrated into each piece. “It is an all-in-one collection, we have a rustic hand-carved chair, a sleek, futuristic metal console, and a whimsical lamp- held by the MuseTRIBE's Gatekeepers. Each item stands alone as a statement piece, yet the collection is subtly linked together by the MuseTRIBE elements,” the studio shares with STIR.

Outlining the story of MuseVERSE and the predating MuseTRIBE toys, the studio shared on their social media feed, “The story of this cataclysmic occurrence in the MuseVERSE is one for the ages, reminding us that we’re all beings tinged in shades of grey, hardly ever finding our conscience solely rid of or brimming with good and evil.”

Moving deeper into MuseVERSE’s narrative, let’s take a quick peek at the products that make up the collection.

Tintin

Tintin, a polyurethane-coated stainless steel console table, balanced on legs of two different styles, is a statement piece that attracts attention with its bold form and textures. The piece can be used both as a table and for storing belongings. Placed in any orientation, it manages to make a statement.

Enigma

Standing true to its name, the Enigma cabinet, crafted out of metal, is shaped like the visage of an animated being. While a part of the storage cabinet, covered in metal patterns, can be seen through, the vault, placed in the middle of the furniture piece, is opaque. The juxtaposition of solids, voids, and semi-voids makes for an atypical design within the typical rectangular outline.

The Litt Guardian lamp

The Lit Guardian is one of the gatekeepers in the MuseVERSE, standing tall at its entrance to protect the inhabitants within. The structure, made of metal and ashwood and finished with a polyurethane coating, keeps the lamp sturdy and intact. Wood MuseTRIBE toys, fixed near the base, further enhance the design of the totemic lamp.

Totemic Chair

The story behind the Totemic Chair goes thus: believed to be a supernatural object that, according to some sects in the MuseVERSE, houses fiendish powers. The anecdote is one of the many decoded from Beasley Burette’s journals that documents lores from the past. Imagined on the basis of the descriptions jotted down by the mad scientist in his journal, the design studio crafted the Totemic high-back chair as a modern throne.

Kingpin chair

Crafted out of hand-carved ashwood by expert craftsmen, coated with a natural polyurethane layer, and dressed in fabric made by Ahmedabad-based textile studio Abstract Homes, the Kingpin swivel chair, despite being well-structured, exudes softness and warmth.

Rumi, the Ruler

Rumi, the imagined ruler and one of the Guardians of the MuseVERSE, can be seen—accompanied by old companions Flyrtle and Herbirax—standing at his window and enjoying the view of the royal gardens and plantations in his empire. While Flyrtle explores the scenery in flight, Herbirax crouches on the ground and nibbles on the sprouting grass. The imagined scene, frozen to create the artwork, makes for a bespoke addition to interior spaces.

Goya, the Gatekeeper

The Goyas in the MuseVERSE are aware of every fact, mystery, and illusion in the empire. Designated as gatekeepers, these protectors keep an eye on all the happenings. Accompanied by a troublesome yet helpful companion who always brings them juicy pineapples, the Goyas stay alert to every being passing into their world. Their presence in one’s living room is sure to offer assurance of safety.

Micah, the Mystic

Perched on the top of a tower, Micah, the Mystic, remains in a meditative state. Psychowl, his trusted companion, hovers nearby, waiting for the mystic to break his trance so that he can deliver the message of an impending event in the MuseVERSE. Delineating the routines of the mystic and his companion, MuseLAB built this decorative piece that encourages audiences to imagine their own stories.

Ely, the Explorer

Another interesting character in the MuseVERSE, Ely, the Explorer, bears the countenance of a curious traveller who can inspire the urge to go out and explore more. Surrounded by lush forests and exotic animals, the artwork depicts Ely’s perpetual state of being.

MuseLAB’s unique series of furniture and artworks each tell novel stories that come together to shape the fictional universe of MuseVERSE. They offer a respite from reality and encourage viewers and audiences to observe the frames and add their own layers to the narrative.