The collaboration between Romanian Design Week and Promenada and Mega Mall, part of the NEPI Rockcastle group, strengthens year by year, becoming an example of a creative partnership that generates a real impact within the community. Promenada and Mega Mall’s involvement in supporting Romanian design reflects a shared mission to bring creativity closer to the general public and to support relevant cultural initiatives.
In 2025, within Romanian Design Week, Mega Mall, together with illustrator Alina Marinescu, presents to the public “Design Space by Mega Mall” – a project taking the form of an oversized chair, highlighted by a graphic intervention that transforms it into a distinct visual landmark within the festival.
Alina Marinescu is an illustrator and visual artist based in Bucharest. She studied Graphic Design at the National University of Arts in Bucharest and works both digitally and analogously. Her work is inspired by emotions and interpersonal relationships, and she often uses visual metaphors to tell stories or express ideas. Her style is colorful and dreamy, and the techniques she uses are varied, often combined with great courage.
In her most recent projects, Alina experiments with diverse materials and explores kitsch as a means of artistic expression, thereby pushing her own boundaries. Alina primarily works in commercial and editorial illustration.
About the Illustration of the Chair and the Creative Concept
“I envisioned the illustration as a sort of oversized pillow made of vegetation. The human silhouette shape invites you to sit on the chair, and the leaves and flowers surround you on all sides. I wanted the illustration to convey a cheerful and dreamy atmosphere, hoping that it would transmit this feeling to anyone who sees it or interacts with it in the context of the chair.” – Alina Marinescu
Through this project, Promenada and Mega Mall reaffirm their commitment to supporting Romanian designers and providing them with a visible platform for their creations to reach a wider audience. The initiative sends a clear message: design is not something abstract or inaccessible; it’s present in our lives, deeply connected to the real needs of each day – it’s found in the objects that surround us, in the spaces we inhabit, and in the activities that define our daily lives.
A Live Performance on May 6, starting at 11:00 AM, at Mega Mall
To transform this artistic intervention into a memorable moment, Alina Marinescu will perform a live drawing on the surface of the oversized chair on May 6, starting at 11:00 AM, at Mega Mall, on the first floor near the Peek & Cloppenburg store. The public is invited to participate in this real-time creative demonstration, to discover the artistic process, and to interact with the artist.
After the event, the chair will remain on display on the first floor of Mega Mall, where it can be admired and photographed by visitors until May 12. Subsequently, the object will be presented in the Design Lounge by Promenada and Mega Mall at Romanian Design Week, held in the former CINA restaurant building (Str. Benjamin Franklin, no. 10), alongside over 100 other contemporary Romanian design objects.