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Blurring Boundaries: Space Between
Multidisciplinary Melbourne studio Space Between takes a non-traditional approach to collaborations with the likes of Nike, Troye Sivan, Arc’Teryx and MPavilion.
Space Between is tricky to define. The Melbourne-based studio’s team comprises graphic designers, motion graphics artists, an architect, an industrial designer, art directors and copywriters, who all collaborate with local and international clients on projects spanning experiential design, showroom concepts, campaigns, store activations and a host of other partnerships. But as founders Tyson Stenglein and Dave Clark are keen to point out, those job titles are more fluid than most. “Our architect can have the biggest impact on a campaign art direction and a motion graphic artist can influence the direction of a spatial design through their reference points,” says Clark. Throw into the mix a concept gallery, At the Above, and it becomes clear this is not a traditional studio environment.
Clark and Stenglein founded the studio in 2010 with an unorthodox approach to art direction and graphic design buttressed by the fact that they’re both self-taught. They’ve built Space Between by “saying yes and following our gut,” says Clark – Space Between doesn’t even have a logo or a typeface declaring its style or intentions. “The studio operates where lines between art and design and fashion, online and offline are blurred, so we go in many directions,” he says. “We try not to be limited by geography, theme, medium or output.”
That has equalled collaborations with taste-makers including AMBUSH, the late Virgil Abloh, Martine Rose, Troye Sivan, The North Face, MPavilion, Arc’teryx, Mental Athletic, Goldwin 0 and more. Space Between’s 12-year partnership with Nike, which incorporates retail, experiential, spatial and identity projects – including a concept space for Off White designer Virgil Abloh’s collaboration with Nike, The Ten – perfectly articulates the many facets of the studio’s unique approach.
“At the Above’s role as a channel and connector is becoming a cornerstone of our day-to-day offering and shaping our future studio model.”
Space Between’s collaborations are organic rather than transactional, developing over time and bringing into the fold creatives and clients it has worked with along the way. A collaboration with Nike and clothing brand AMBUSH saw the studio design an activation involving 20 emerging artists from Australia and abroad in the lead-up to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, while an immersive activation in At the Above to launch Troye Sivan’s perfume brand TSU LANGE YOR starred a bespoke fit-out inspired by the performer’s Flack Studio-designed Melbourne home.
At the Above was founded in 2019 and sits below Space Between’s Fitzroy HQ. It has hosted more than 80 exhibitions, pop-ups and residencies, sharing a team with Space Between. The two work symbiotically on projects, exhibitions, activations and pop-ups. Emerging artists nurtured by At the Above are often enlisted to bring their creative force to Space Between’s collaborations, while “At the Above’s role as a channel and connector is becoming a cornerstone of our day-to-day offering and shaping our future studio model,” says Stenglein.
While Space Between wasn’t started with a specific blueprint, both men are clear about what they hope the studio will achieve in the future. “We’re excited about the potential to partner as a creative mind and engine for both local and global clientele, from cultural institutions and luxury fashion houses to commercial enterprises,” says Stenglein.
Artworks Marty Baptist, Stephanie Cammarano and Soul McKenzie.
