Dmitry Samygin: Sandro Lominashvili, Allo 02

The bench project for the Tbilisi metro reads as a precise and timely intervention. The station in which they were introduced had long lacked any seating, and for this reason the project extends beyond a purely aesthetic statement. It is a work in which functionality does not yield to expression, but rather reinforces it, making the project genuinely significant within the urban context. In the environment of a metro system—where people are most often in a state of waiting or transit—the presence of a thoughtfully designed place to sit becomes an essential part of the everyday experience.

The author of the project, Sandro Lominashvili, has a subtle sensitivity to space and a confident command of form. He has managed to create a cohesive project that integrates organically into the station’s architecture. The dynamic quality of the benches evokes the movement of trains entering and leaving the tunnel. This association is not literal, but is perceived on a sensory level—through rhythm, line, and plasticity. The form does not operate as an isolated gesture, but as a continuation of the environment in which it exists. The benches are aligned along the central axis of the station, establishing a clear compositional rhythm and reinforcing the spatial perspective. They not only serve as a functional element, but also guide movement and structure the perception of the elongated hall. The benches do not compete with the architecture; rather, they integrate into it, operating through a tactful presence while maintaining a balance between expression and neutrality.

 Sandro Lominashvili, Allo 02, undergound station Technical University; photo: Grigory Sokolinsky

The plasticity and internal logic of the form are especially evident in the photographs by Grigory Sokolinsky, where the dynamism and rhythm of the objects are emphasized. In this sense, the project and its visual interpretation in media form a strong and considered tandem, in which documentation becomes an extension of the design statement.

Materiality is addressed with equal precision. The benches are composed of different types of marble, assembled into a bold composition. The varying tones of stone function as a restrained palette that does not dominate the space, yet reveals the richness of the material upon closer observation. At the same time, the color relationships enter into a subtle dialogue with the station’s mosaic panel. This is not a direct quotation, but a careful continuation of the existing visual language—an accurate response to the character of the space. There is no intention to dominate or redefine the environment. On the contrary, the project operates through respect for the existing context—its architecture, scale, light, and materials. Such a position requires a certain discipline and professional maturity: the ability not only to create an expressive form, but also to understand the objectives of the project.

 Detail, Sandro Lominashvili, Allo 02, undergound station Technical University; photo: Grigory Sokolinsky

The context in which the project emerged adds particular value. In Tbilisi, an environment is currently forming in which young designers and artists are given the opportunity to realize their ideas within public space. Behind this is Public Art Fund willing to take responsibility and support such initiatives. This is a fundamentally important process: it shapes not only new objects, but also a new cultural fabric of the city, in which contemporary design becomes part of everyday life.

As a practicing designer, I feel the importance of such projects especially strongly. They matter not only for their authors, but for the city as a whole—as examples of how contemporary design can engage with context, respect it, and at the same time introduce a new quality to the urban environment. It is precisely through such, at first glance small interventions, that a more attentive, considered, and human urban environment gradually takes shape.

 Sandro Lominashvili, Allo 02, undergound station Technical University; photo: Grigory Sokolinsky