Aoife Mulvenna (FADA Studio) - Multifaceted Design
FADA is a multifaceted design studio; an open, empathetic environment where creative conversation can thrive and flourish, where concepts are nurtured, contorted, and tested before taking on their final form.
We are considered in our approach, producing work that instils an appreciation for craft and precedent.
Derived from the Irish language, FADA is an acronym for 'Faoi Aon Dfon Amhain', translating as 'Under One Roof'. In this space, under one roof, we thrive on the cross-pollination of ideas, people, and place, resulting in the creation of meaningful, timeless spaces, furniture, objects, and forms. Founder and architectural designer Aoife Mulvenna is a collaborative creative and architectural designer with a passion for emotional place making and an eye for detail. She is driven by a genuine desire to understand her clients on a deeper level, crafting beautiful spaces that feel authentic and brand specific.
For FADA, Islands of Design speaks to our approach to every project. Each is its own island, shaped by people, craft, and precedent, yet none exist in isolation. A red, FADA-shaped thread runs through them all, with rhythms of collaboration, community, and context flowing between, carrying stories, ideas, and people.
"Our island is built on collective imagination and visual communication; a place where design becomes dialogue. Within the archipelago of Belfast's design community, we see collaboration as the streams and rivers that connect our shared waters."
Through Islands of Design, we unite these worlds to create something larger; a space where design is the anchor, rooting ideas in place.
FADA would fill a pop-up design museum with fragments of process; the sketches, textures, materials, conversations, and contradictions that shape how we design. We'd show the in-between spaces, the moments before form takes hold, where collaboration and curiosity sparks something magical.
Our exhibit would be less about finished objects and more about the exploration and testing it took to get there. Layers of research, client and designer dialogue, and visual experimentation that built meaningful spaces. Visitors could move through our island of ideas, viewing quick instinctual sketches, touching materials and seeing design as a living process rather than a polished outcome. For us, design is not an endpoint but a meeting point where people, place, and imagination converge. Our pop-up would reflect that; a space for intention not perfection.
Belfast's design story is one of creativity, courage, and wit, shaped by our history, grounded in humility, and lifted by a self-deprecating humour that keeps us human. FADA doesn't see this as a weakness but rather a strength that sets us apart. Our vision is for Belfast's creative talent and storytelling to shine on a global stage, proving that there is power in authenticity and playfulness.
