Marius Mateika Receives the Golden A' Design Award for Clay Moulded Musical Theatre in Interior Space and Exhibition Design

Marius Mateika recognized for interior space and exhibition design by the international grand jury of the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

COMO, Italy, April 23, 2025 /DesignNewswire/ Clay Moulded Musical Theatre by Marius Mateika, designed for Mama architects, has been granted the Golden A' Design Award in the Interior Space and Exhibition Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The result belongs to the 2024 - 2025 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who evaluated anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.

About the Golden A' Design Award

The Gold A' Design Award is granted to designs that demonstrate a high level of innovation and a significant impact on their intended audience. Recognized as a major achievement by the A' Design Awards, these designs are characterized by their visionary approach and the exceptional skill of their creators. Winners of the Gold A' Design Award are noted for their ability to push the envelope in art, science, design, and technology, delivering solutions that not only meet but exceed expectations. These designs serve as benchmarks for excellence, encouraging further innovation and inspiring future generations of designers.

About Clay Moulded Musical Theatre

Clay Moulded is the interior design of a musical theatre in Klaipeda, Lithuania. Clay covers the walls and ceilings, and over 30 tonnes of the material were applied by hand. The pattern of the main hall is continuous and runs from one end of the space to the other. A seven stage coating process was developed for the project, including spraying, patterning, drying, scrubbing, glazing and conservation. The walls and ceilings can open and close to control sound reflections, so the space adapts to concerts, plays and meetings. The auditorium seats 700 people.

Award Record

This recognition makes Marius Mateika a winner of 1 A' Design Award.

About the A' Interior Space, Retail and Exhibition Design Award

The A' Interior Design Award is an international interior design competition recognizing good interior designs by interior designers and architects worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to interior designers, interior architects, architects and decorators from all countries. Typical entries include residential interiors, restaurants, hotels, offices, galleries and retail stores. The awarded interior designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/interior

About A' Design Award & Competition

Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com

Press Resources

Winner Page: https://designers.org/171457
A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/171457
Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!171457
Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/366817
Further Information from the Laureate: https://mamaarchitects.com/

Media Contact

Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953

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Fact Sheet

The Work

Project: Clay Moulded Musical Theatre
Function: Musical Theatre
Category: Interior Space and Exhibition Design
Discipline: Spatial Design
Industry: Architecture and Packaging & Retail
Colors: Saddle Brown, Black, Sienna, Indian Red and Peru
Images: 5
Client: Mama architects

The Recognition

Laureate: Marius Mateika
Recognition: Golden A' Design Award
Edition: 2024 - 2025
Design ID: #171457

Credits

Image Credits: Photographer: Leonas Garbačauskas

Design Details

Unique Properties: For the interior décor, we chose an archaic material - clay. It is probably the largest interior in the world made of natural clay. The pattern and technology of the hall is unique and continuous throughout the space, created by one artist Mantas Petravičius. All planes are in motion. They open and close (as you can see in photo 3) depending on the nature of the concert and the acoustics required. And that's what makes this space even more unique.
Inspiration: The city of Klaipėda, where the theatre is located, is by the sea. We were inspired by the sandy coastline of the sea and the shores shaped by the waves. Klaipėda is an old city dominated by red clay brick buildings. For us, the sea and the clay became the basis for the idea. As this is a theatre, clay seemed to us to be the right material to create a dramatic mood.
Research: Clay was used for wall and ceiling decor. The whole process was done by hand in stages: 1.) First, the clay is sprayed, then swiped with special tools made just for this object to form waves. 2.) Waiting for everything to dry. Then the sharp corners are scrubbed. 3.) Repeat the spraying with a thinner layer. After spraying, the clay shall be brushed to distribute the clay evenly and to form a soft surface. 4.) Wait for everything to dry. 5.) Everything is impregnated and preserved.
Challenge: The decor of the main hall is a continuous pattern starting at one end of the hall and ending at the other. Meanwhile, the process required major interruptions and took 9 months. The hardest part was to bring everything together into a coherent picture. The rest of the public spaces (lobbies, passages, staircases) are also made of clay. Here, the pattern is different, but also handmade.
Realization and Technology: We used over 30 tonnes of clay for the walls and ceilings of the entire interior. This work took nine months to complete using unique tools created exclusively for this work and was carried out by the hands. The clay coating process is also unique, developed exclusively for this theatre.The process itself consists of 7 stages (clay spraying, patterning, drying, scrubbing, re-spraying, glazing, conservation). It takes about 3 weeks to complete all the steps. The whole process was implemented on the construction site.
Operation and Interaction: This theatre has transformable walls and ceilings. They open up. This controls sound reflections. The space adapts to the event. (Depending on whether it's a concert, a play, an meeting event).
Project Duration and Location: The project lasted 5 years. The clay decoration alone took 9 months. The theatre is realized in Klaipeda, Lithuania.
Specifications: The whole theater is 10 000m2 size. The auditorium has seating capacity of 700 people. We used over 30 tonnes of clay for wall decor.
Keywords: Klaipėdos muzikinis teatras, Klaipėda state musical theatre, MAMA architects