settle, a temporary architectural installation designed and curated by TRESTLE, proposes a public interior for gathering and collective experience in the contemporary city. Drawing on the functionalism and adaptability of Irish vernacular furniture, the installation explores how an infrastructure of carefully considered objects can form a temporary public interior. Its components can be rearranged and reformatted for different events and gatherings, allowing the installation to adapt to different civic settings. Photographed by Willem Pab in St Luke’s crypt in Cork City, where it was presented in summer 2026, settle is set to be installed in a number of civic spaces over the coming months.
all images by Willem Pab
public interior by TRESTLE becomes framework for collective use
The project considers the public interior as a setting for collective experience within the modern city. Referencing Hannah Arendt’s writing on the importance of a shared ‘common world of things,’ Studio TRESTLE positions public interiors as part of this shared environment. The project responds to social structures that increasingly prioritize individual life, alongside the shift of everyday interaction toward digital spaces, by examining the role of tangible, situated rooms for public use.
settle explores a prototypical public interior through spatial order, thresholds, material character, repetition, and variation. These qualities are generated through a movable arrangement of objects and architectural gestures rather than a fixed interior. The installation can therefore be recast for different uses while maintaining a coherent spatial framework.
The project also considers reuse as a response to the climate emergency, focusing on how existing buildings can accommodate new forms of public life. Through a collection of functional, movable objects, settle creates a temporary civic interior that can be occupied, adapted, and reused across different locations.
settle creates a temporary public interior for gathering