Yakusha opens miami: a concise orientation before we get practical.
Yakusha opens miami: Quick notes
Ukrainian designer Victoria Yakusha has launched a studio and gallery space in Miami, featuring clay-covered walls and an “island” made from real plants that creates a naturalistic backdrop for her designs.
Victoria Yakusha Space functions as a studio, gallery and showcase for Yakusha’s “live minimalism” approach, which combines minimalist aesthetics with natural materials and Ukrainian cultural roots.
Victoria Yakusha has opened a gallery in Miami
Yakusha, who is originally from Ukraine and now based in Brussels, is known for her sculptural furniture and objects made from natural materials such as clay, wood, willow and flax.
Having previously established galleries in Antwerp and Kyiv to display the objects created under her Faina brand, she decided to set up her first US location in Miami.
“I truly love New York, and I hesitated for a long time between New York and Miami,” she told Dezeen. “But Miami was less represented within our company’s projects and products, which made it the right choice.”
The space is organised around a plant-covered “island”
Although Miami’s vibrant culture and bold style clash with her own more pared-back sensibility, Yakusha said she was inspired by the city’s lightness and sense of hope when creating the interior.
“It’s a challenge for me, because the city’s atmosphere and spirit are very different from what I’m used to in Europe or in New York, but that contrast is precisely what makes it interesting,” she explained.
“I simply can’t imagine creating a dark or overly complex, multi-layered interior in Miami,” Yakusha added. “Instead, I wanted a space that makes you feel at ease, where the world feels a little brighter.”
Yakusha uses the space as a studio and showroom
The interior explores the idea of contrast by seeking to balance past and future, as well as feminine and masculine elements, and materials such as antique wood and modern metal.
Natural textures, including stone and clay, combine with polished metal surfaces, while the exposed technical services below the ceiling contrast with a natural “living island” in the centre of the floor.
“The world is made of these contrasts and what truly interests me is when you manage to combine them so seamlessly that you don’t even notice the tension at first glance – everything simply feels whole,” said Yakusha.
Victoria Yakusha designs furniture collection as homage to Ukraine
The main material used throughout the space is a clay finish made from imported Ukrainian clay, which Yakusha also uses to create many of her sculptures.
The clay surfaces are intended to bring a tactile, grounded feel to the space, connecting it back to the designer’s Ukrainian roots.
“Clay has the energy of the earth – it’s a living material,” Yakusha suggested. “It gives a sense of strength and connection, something you feel but can’t describe in words.”
It features pieces such as her Soniah floor lamps
The clay applied to the gallery’s walls provides an organic, textural element that contrasts with the slick, modern aesthetic of a stainless-steel display cabinet positioned along the back wall.
This ancient and familiar material is given a fresh, modern feel through the choice of a calming hue, which Yakusha emphasised by matching it with the microcement floor and painted ceiling.
The clay surfaces provide a refined backdrop for the planted “island” at the centre, which was designed to lend a mythical feel to the space.
Sculptures from her Land of Light series decorate the gallery
The island’s circular form, which is echoed elsewhere by a large mirror and a dining table, represents a key aspect of Yakusha’s philosophy – the idea of continuity and the unbroken movement of time.
The space is also home to sculptures from Yakusha’s Land of Light series. Crafted from ztista – a material she developed that combines natural ingredients to create a dough-like organic surface – the pieces reference Ukrainian folklore and ancient craftsmanship.
“Here, they almost feel as if they’re living in a magical forest,” Yakusha added. “They carry a Ukrainian spirit, yet they bring joy, radiate hope and somehow feel perfectly at home in Miami.”
The opening marks her first gallery in the US
Yakusha founded her eponymous design studio in 2005 and was initially based in Kyiv, where she designed a monochrome workspace that was shortlisted at Dezeen Awards 2019.
In 2014, Yakusha set up Faina with the aim of creating collectible design objects based on Ukrainian craft traditions. Her design for the Antwerp gallery features earthy tones informed by soil and moss.
The photography is by Gabriel Volpi.
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This is inspiring — I’m excited to try it out. Will try it.
Also • Loved this about “Victoria Yakusha opens Miami gallery wit” — such a great idea.