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FROM A GARAGE PROJECT
TO A MODULAR SYSTEM AND A BRAND
role: inventor / product design / design+brand direction / product development
client: origami systems s.r.o. / 2D: Zuzana Ondruszová Lehutová / photo: Josef Kubíček, Studio Flusser / realization: 2019-2023
ORIGAMI WALL emerged in 2019 as a response to the lack of an affordable, high-quality solution that combines a retaining wall and a vertical garden in one. Its distinctive design and versatility inspired the name ORIGAMI.
It began as a home project. I made the first mould and concrete mix using readily available materials, learning a great deal through experimentation.
The first castings weren’t always perfect. Through successive iterations, I refined their rough geometry into a precise, coherent form.
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The project attracted interest from both the public and professionals, including architect Jiří Bužek. Together, we decided to develop it into a product, combining his construction expertise with my experience in product development.
Developing the product
Turning the project into a professional product presented several challenges.
The first was the block itself. After my initial experiences with the prototype and collaborating with a horticultural specialist, I decided to change the proportions and internal volume, opening it up toward the slope so that the roots could grow into the slope and not become waterlogged.
The minimalist exterior shape required a well-thought-out system for shaping the interior space. The thin-walled block is cast using a complex system of composite cores filled with a special polyurethane compound.
During the process, I was responsible for developing a mold that combines efficient casting and demolding with, of course, the product’s functional requirements. We developed a custom concrete mix in collaboration with the Faculty of Civil Engineering at Brno University of Technology.
We designed the system so it can be assembled into more complex shapes.
The entire system can be equipped with drip irrigation, and each plant can be connected to its own dripper, with the option to adjust the amount of water.
One Block, Two Uses
The ORIGAMI project was originally conceived as a retaining wall. We subsequently named this system “W55” to reflect the angle of the slope.
However, by tilting the block’s front face to a vertical position, a new application became possible. We mounted the blocks on a steel support structure and added removable plastic planters, drip irrigation and drainage to simplify maintenance and keep the installation clean. This became W90, the system for interior applications.
W55
W90
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Packaging and delivery
The design process doesn’t end with the product, but with its safe delivery to the user.
In the packaging system, I emphasized efficiency, waste minimization, and subsequent recycling.
The blocks are packaged securely yet minimalistically in recycled cardboard without any additional gluing. Using an origami-style folding method—what else? :-)
From a Product to a Brand
Once the project had taken shape as a cohesive system, we began thinking about a brand that would capture its character. So I invited Zuzana Ondruszová Lehutová to collaborate with me, and she created the graphic identity for the ORIGAMI brand.
My task was to maintain a consistent direction for both the product and the brand—ensuring that the visual identity expressed the system’s distinctive style, its clean geometry and technical sophistication, as well as its natural connection to plants.
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ORIGAMI WALL was introduced in 2020 at Designblok, where it was very well received by the general public.
Shortly after its launch, the product was awarded by several international awards!
From a backyard to worldwide
What began as a retaining wall for a single garden evolved into a system for both exterior and interior use under its own brand.
My work as a designer gradually came to include not only product design, but also the development of production molds, packaging, and the overall direction of the product, the brand, and its visual identity.
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