In conversation with Oskar Zięta

“When you love what you do, you are determined to achieve the intended goal - the creative process becomes a part of you.”

 - Oskar Zięta

Oskar Zięta

Oskar Zięta, architect, process designer and artist, works across disciplines to explore the intersections of form, material and technology. His practice combines design, engineering, art and bionics to produce objects that push the limits of metal and its potential. Using a technique he developed called FiDU, Zięta inflates thin steel sheets with air, shaping them into durable, lightweight structures with a strong sculptural presence.

Zięta’s work spans functional pieces like the PLOPP stool to large scale installations such as Wirand Nawa. These projects go beyond the object itself, engaging with their surroundings and inviting interaction. Whether placed in urban or natural settings, Zięta’s creations act as interventions, transforming space through their presence and material expression.

His latest installation, Whispers, can be seen outside One New Ludgate as part of the London Festival of Architecture 2025. In this interview, Zięta discusses the ideas behind Whispers, the evolution of his methods, and how sculpture can reshape the way we experience public space.

Your work often involves advanced metal-forming techniques, particularly FiDU. How did this approach shape the making of Whispers, and what technical challenges did the project involve?

I already know the technology. I sketch intuitively. Very often, the first sketch is almost identical to the final form. Logistical and organisational details are more often the issue than technological ones. Especially today, when we can use the enormous computing power of computers and perform countless simulations. I have been working with the material for so long that I can create a precise simulation in my head, which I put on paper. It is a bit like riding a bike - once you learn, you will not forget. When you love what you do, you are determined to achieve the intended goal - the creative process becomes a part of you.

The FiDU process is always surprising. It is a dialogue with the material, a process of controlled loss of control. On the one hand, we predict, plan, and calculate precisely, but on the other hand, the material gives a free response. It lives its own life. The challenge is the balance between control and its absence. This is what Whispers illustrated: stories about what happens to the same form when we pump air into it, when there is a hole or vent for pumping air in different places.

What led you to choose the title Whispers, and how does it reflect the ideas or atmosphere you aimed to create with the installation?

The name of the installation has its foundations in the theme of the London Festival of Architecture "Voices".

But what are our voices without the opportunity to share them? A single message sent into the void doesn’t even return as an echo. As senders, and walking, thinking resonance boxes for voices, we seek out recipients for our messages. With the creation of Whispers, a space designed for exchanging voices, we aim to highlight the importance of intimacy in communication. Through conversation - whether spoken softly, in hushed tones, or even in whispers - sitting together in a circle, we can break down barriers and connect meaningfully. 

In interpersonal relations, the "circle" or "ring" is a powerful symbol of unity and community, where all participants are equally heard and seen. The project also tells a story about the physical properties of sound, which travels as energy through vibrations - a phenomenon that links us to the world through hearing and sensation. Sound’s ability to resonate with people stems not only from its physical attributes but also from its power to stir emotions, influence our physiology, and foster shared cultural experiences. As it travels, sound bridges the tangible world with the intangible realm of human emotions, creating connections that transcend the material.

Whispers has been unveiled in the heart of Fleet Street for the London Festival of Architecture, in an area rich with history and identity. How did the location influence the concept and design of the installation?

Whispers is situated on Ludgate Hill, a location recognised by the London Festival of Architecture and City Highways as an emerging and attractive venue for a cultural and artistic celebration. Nestled between two of Sir Christopher Wren's architectural masterpieces—St Paul’s Cathedral and St Bride’s Church—this site offers a historically rich and visually striking backdrop. Positioned near City Thameslink station and along one of Fleet Street’s major arteries connecting the City of London with Westminster, the site benefits from high footfall, ensuring wide public engagement.

Moreover, the historical significance of Fleet Street enriches the Whispers installation with deeper cultural resonance. Known as the birthplace of British journalism and a long-standing symbol of the freedom of speech and the voice of society, Fleet Street embodies the ideals of open dialogue and the power of collective expression. By placing the sculpture in this context, it not only celebrates the area’s legacy but also serves as a modern reflection on the importance of amplifying voices and fostering a shared commitment to the principles of free and meaningful communication.

Oskar Zięta. Image credit Laura Korzeniowska

You are known for projects that sit between design, art and architecture. Where does Whispers sit for you — and how do you decide what kind of piece you are making when starting a new commission?

Sculpture is a process, for me it is a process of vindictive study of location, surroundings, and meanings. All my activity is a process. Constantly facing design, deadline, and aesthetic challenges, I treat it as a daily adventure, discovery, and improvement. Appropriate determination allows for development, growth, but also reduction. I always create site-specific. I delve into the history and contexts of places. Each project, each sculpture has deep roots of meaning - some are known from the very beginning of the process, others appear during. Therefore, each place, city, and space has an influence.

You have worked in some of the world’s most iconic spaces — from the Centre Pompidou to the V&A. How does showing work in London, as part of the Festival of Architecture, compare to those earlier experiences?

It is not about comparisons, but about continuation. The Whispers sculpture is a beautiful continuation of the story that I started with the installation Blow & Roll in London. At the V&A, I rolled out the first rolled steel profile in the world. Individual profiles were also presented in the exhibition space of Phillips de Pury in the Saatchi Gallery, where everyone could inflate them using a bicycle pump. It is a beautiful complement to the initiative that we carried out in the place where the Whispers sculpture was intended. The bonding of everything is the FiDU technology, the continuous improvement and optimisation of which allows us to reach the next rung of the ladder. And I hope that this ladder will soon reach space, and it is in extraterrestrial space that we will be able to create art from metal.

Your pieces are often made in steel, but they don’t always look like what people expect from the material. What are you trying to say by working with steel in this way?

My fascination with metal was born when, as a young boy, I spent long hours in my grandfather's blacksmith's workshop. I observed the processing, heavy tools, and hard work. It was the transformation that fascinated me the most – changing the form to give a different meaning to something that previously seemed to be a shapeless, ugly element. I base my actions on this constant transformation today.

I combine the technological deformation of cold metal with the nuance of artistic creation. I maximise the physical potential of the material and extract its optical softness. I implement all my projects based on the sense of an architect, the precision of an engineer, and the sensitivity of a creator. Metal is the ideal medium for this. It is interdisciplinary, recyclable and durable. It is one of the materials of the future.

How do you work with your team during the design and production stages, and what role does collaboration play in bringing a piece like Whispers to life?

Collaboration is the foundation of everything, which is why I often use the plural when I talk about objects. We work interdisciplinarily. Unusually for artists, we are responsible for the entire process. From the first sketch, through experiments, prototyping, searching for the final form. All the way to production, logistics, and assembly. We are a self-sufficient artistic and production machine.

Whispers also showed us how, with the power of our muscles and the will to create/participate, we can create a work of art together.

We should also remember all the partners and sponsors without whom this and many other projects could not have been successful. For Whispers, which is a part of the London Festival of Architecture, I would like to once again thank Fleet Street Quarter, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, the Polish Cultural Institute in London, Let’s Art Foundation, On & On Designs, and the British Council.

Are there materials or types of public spaces you haven’t yet worked with that you are interested in exploring in future projects?

The space that I most dream of exploring is outer space. We don't learn from books. We create our primers with our own alphabet, the foundation of which is knowledge of the material. This is what we can learn about, explore its secrets and potential. And they are enormous. I don't know if in my lifetime, but I am certain that our pumped metal profiles have enormous space potential. In fact, it is only today that intelligent solutions, algorithm, and the computing power of computers allow us to fully use the potential of FiDU technology. The pace of experimentation and precision allows us to reach much further.

ZietaStudio, Whispers, Photo by Alka Murat

The [Quick] #FLODown:

Best life advice?

Less is less

Last song you listened to?

Hania Rani & Skalpel - Escape 

Last book you read?

Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down Paperback  - J. E. Gordon

Can't live without...?

deformation 

What should the art world be more of and less of?

Less material, more meanings

Oskar Zięta’s latest sculpture, Whispers, is on display outside One New Ludgate as part of the London Festival of Architecture 2025, until Sunday 28 September 2025.

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