Refinery 29 put on 29 Rooms starting in 2015 that was one of the first traveling pop-up “insta-friendly” museums. 29 Rooms just like the online magazine/channel focused the event on being fashion forward, political, artsy, interactive and featuring some of the best contemporary artists to create rooms that challenge your perception of art and yourself. They call themselves, “The makers behind Refinery29 have collaborated with visionaries and brands in the fields of art, activism, style, and technology to bring you 29 experiences under one roof that tap into the conversations of today and our hopes for tomorrow. Through multi-sensory installations, performances, and workshops, we present you with a new way to connect with creativity, culture, and community.”
This year’s 29 Rooms was full of color and light. We brought the very Fashionably Nerdy, Jenny Lorenzo with us to explore. I’m not sure if there were actually 29 rooms to see but we saw a lot of rooms. Many installations were focused on lighting.
My favorite was a round rig of lamps all featuring different colors of the rainbow which projects a gorgeous rainbow glow all over you.
There was also a room with astrology and crystal gazing, a palm reading area, a teenagers bedroom complete with muppet fur everywhere and 90’s memorabilia, a dance room, and several places you could go to paint.
Giveaways included small primer samples from Smashbox and samples of Kevita Kombucha. Downstairs a relaxation room full of pillows and calming music was an oasis.
I wish there were more sponsorships as the only other partnership I saw was with Hulu promoting their new show Dollface. I would have loved more snacks to try or beverages (I think that’s always the case with these pop-ups).
My favorite thing about 29 Rooms was the flow. It is a huge open space you can go to any room you want and most are somewhat private with walls separating them and bouncers helping with flow — so, you don’t feel overwhelmed by people at all times and if there is a line for a room the lines move quick and with the flow being the way it is – if there is a line in one place wait 10 min and return and almost always no lines. 29 Rooms was definitely a unique experience unlike other pop-ups I have been to – I know every year they change the theme and the rooms change from city to city — I look forward to seeing what they do in the future.