A day at our studio in Zürich…come see what’s going on, at our…
Open Day Apéro on 18th June from 4-10pm.
Hear what we are working on and see how we can collaborate.
There will be fun demonstrations and a small sample sale.
Address:
Rümlangstrasse 91a
8052 Zürich
Photography credits nr. 1/5/6 @marcorosasco
#hotwireextensions
After the kids have settled into their new primary school, we are happy to share the new signage at Schule Thurgauerstrasse 55 in Zürich, commissioned by Amt Für Hochbauten @zuerichbaut .
Taking inspiration from the technical and linear appearance of the new building by Bollhalder Walser Architects, the signage for the schools seeks to contrast the building’s static nature with a sense of childhood wonder and playfulness. The typography references standardised methods of early writing instruction, such as the “Deutschschweizer Basisschrift,” as well as tools like exercise books and grid paper. This signage aims to evoke memories and reflect on the foundational learning processes that shape early education.
To achieve this, we designed a unique font, OP Saturday, for both 2D and 3D applications, collaborating closely with Hot Wire Extensions, known for their sustainable and innovative manufacturing processes. The result is dynamic, playful signage that brings a subtle, tactile warmth and seamlessly integrates with the building’s architecture.
Typography and signage design: @onari.projects
Production and development: @hotwireextensions
Architecture: @bollhalderwalser
Client: @zuerichbaut
Photography: @dxh.jpg
In the past, many objects required coatings due to manufacturing limitations. We have finally overcome this challenge, unlocking many new possibilities. Introducing our first redesign: the basic stool with a fully natural surface made from white marble sand. Excited to explore and develop more objects with this new approach, which will also introduce novels aesthetics for us.
The building by Bollhalder Walser Architects feels precise, almost static. With the signage, we set out to introduce a counterpoint: something softer, more dynamic, almost alive.
Using the unique Hot Wire Extensions process, heated wire transforms a mixture of sand and recycled nylon into solid forms. Fine lines evolve into volumes, as if the letters are emerging directly from the wire itself.
The material expression adds warmth, texture, and a sense of movement to the facade, creating a contrast to the building’s technical character.
Typography and signage design: @onari.projects
Production and development: @hotwireextensions
Architecture: @bollhalderwalser
Client: @zuerichbaut
Photography: @dxh.jpg
We developed a custom typeface through experiments in both 2D and 3D, resulting in objects shaped as much by process as by the architecture itself. Without the usual separation between design, planning, and production, collaboration became central to the project. The result is a shared exploration of material and process, driven by making rather than predefined outcomes
Typography and signage design: @onari.projects
Production and development: @hotwireextensions
Architecture: @bollhalderwalser
Client: @zuerichbaut
Photography: @dxh.jpg
The second entrance connects interior and exterior spaces and serves as an additional main entrance: the signage marks this area and stages it as a sculptural welcome.
Typography and signage design: @onari.projects Production and development: @hotwireextensions Architecture: @bollhalderwalser Client: @zuerichbaut Photography: @dxh.jpg
Next up: Re Bar by Fabio Hendry.
Re Bar is a collection by designer and material researcher Fabio Hendry. Drawing inspiration from the visual language of construction sites and rebar nets, the project explores the structural logic and inherent qualities of overlooked materials usually embedded in infrastructure.
Hendry reimagines these materials for domestic use, challenging their conventional role. The objects are crafted through his innovative Hot Wire Extensions manufacturing process, which transforms recycled waste from selective laser sintering 3D printing and natural white marble sand into a composite. This is then fused by heat to create solid, organic, mineral-like forms.
Blending sculpture, architecture and design, the collection balances the raw industrial nature of rebar with the hand-crafted quality of the process. The result is a series of objects that invite us to reconsider the aesthetic value of materials usually hidden within the built environment, creating new visual landscapes, merging functional and sculptural forms.
Image credits
1: Richard Round Turner
2-3: Fabio Hendry
4: Marco Rosasco
#swissdesignawards
#swissdesignawards2026
Last summer we brought the exterior lettering of Primarschule Nordstern on Thurgauerstrasse in Zürich to life.
More than simply identifying the building, the signage defines a moment of arrival. The letters extend from the concrete canopy, guiding the entrance while giving the school a tactile and expressive identity. Depending on the light, their attachment almost disappears and the letters begin to float.
Typography and signage design: @onari.projects
Production and development: @hotwireextensions
Architecture: @bollhalderwalser
Client: @zuerichbaut
Photography: @dxh.jpg
Terrain No 3
Neither carved nor assembled, Terrain No 03 takes shape as a landscape-like surface, somewhere between natural formation and constructed form.
Dimensions: 103 L x 52 W x 25cm H
Materials: Locally sourced sand, waste nylon powder
Commissioned by @secondnature_design_projects
Terrains:
This work started as a way to understand how heat moves through mixed materials, and how that movement can be controlled and adjusted.
Waste nylon plastic is combined with natural sands sourced around Switzerland and artificially coloured sand. The materials are placed into a contained bed and exposed to gravity, temperature, and time. As heat is introduced, the material begins to move, compress, and fuse, though not evenly. Different sands conduct heat differently, which affects how the mass binds together. Some areas become dense and compact, while others remain open and fragile.
The surface is a direct result of this process, recording collapses, compressions, and points of pressure. There is no additional finishing. Texture forms as heat passes through the material, and once the energy dissipates, the material is left to settle.
Currently on show at @secondnature_design_projects
Terrains:
This work started as a way to understand how heat moves through mixed materials, and how that movement can be controlled and adjusted. Waste nylon plastic is combined with natural sands sourced around Switzerland and artificially coloured sand. The materials are placed into a contained bed and exposed to gravity, temperature, and time. As heat is introduced, the material begins to move, compress, and fuse, though not evenly. Different sands conduct heat differently, which affects how the mass binds together. Some areas become dense and compact, while others remain open and fragile. The surface is a direct result of this process, recording collapses, compressions, and points of pressure. There is no additional finishing. Texture forms as heat passes through the material, and once the energy dissipates, the material is left to settle.
Currently on show at @secondnature_design_projects
Neither carved nor assembled, Terrain No 11 takes shape as a landscape-like surface, somewhere between natural formation and constructed form.
Terrain No 11
Dimensions: 102 x W 52 x H 34 cm
Materials: Fluorescent orange and pink sand, local grey sand, waste nylon powder, aluminium
Currently on show at x and oh! at @secondnature_design_projects
