On Running Rocks

Developed between 2022 and 2023, the ON Running Rocks series is a collection of site-specific installations created for the brand’s flagship stores in Zurich, London, and Miami. This collaboration was born from a shared vision between the studio and ON Running, focusing on experimental design processes and a deep respect for material philosophy. The project translates the brand's "foundational myth"—a 2.5-meter granite boulder in the Swiss Alps where its three founders first conceived the company—into a series of localized, high-tech artifacts.

The design team approached each installation as a challenge to the standard reproduction of form. While the volume remains a digital twin of the original alpine rock, its "skin" and materiality evolve to reflect the unique character of each city. This strategy transforms a global symbol into a locally-rooted statement:

Zurich: A "sonic rock" that deconstructs the brand's own technical textiles and footwear into rock-like textures, featuring an immersive 24-hour soundscape recorded in the original alpine location.

London: A tribute to British architectural heritage, where the rock's volume is meticulously sculpted from stratified layers of local bricks and brass rings that map the city's running routes through its parks.

Miami: An exploration of industrial archeology, materialized in steel with a bichromatic powder coating, reflecting the vibrant and rugged industrial atmosphere of South Florida.

Technically, the series showcases the studio’s expertise in merging 3D scanning and digital fabrication with traditional craftsmanship and engineering. From achieving a 360-degree sound field in Zurich to solving complex weight-reduction challenges in London (reducing a 2.5-ton structure to just 400kg), each piece is a technical milestone.

As a cohesive body of work, the ON Running Rocks demonstrate how the studio can ground a global brand’s identity in physical, tactile, and sonic experiences. By recontextualizing the same geological form through diverse material lenses, the team has created a series of "totems" that bridge the gap between ON's alpine origins and its future as a leader in sustainable innovation and urban culture.