federico babina's imaginative illustrations tell fairy tales through architecture

italian illustrator federico babina blends fantasy with reality, imagining the architecture of fairy tale characters. ‘architale’ uses the built form, its shapes and innate geometries to convey key aspects of the story, transforming the buildings into ‘narrative objects’. for example, the long nose of pinocchio becomes an extruded wooden window; hansel and gretel’s need for sweets is illustrated as a gingerbread façade; and the princess and the pea’s obsession with perfection is reflected in a carefully stacked structure — with a pea-shaped void. 

babina’s 17 architectural illustrations convey an intuitive and sensory experience where each architectural detail is a small fragement of information about the characters and the story. hidden details are revealed that relate to each of the protagonists: a tin frame is used for the wizard of oz dwelling; teapot-shaped structures are included in the alice of wonderland abode; and an arrow-shaped roof completes robin hood’s house. ‘beautiful fairy tales — like good architecture — are adorned with magic and mystery and supported by a solid structure,’ babina says. ‘like any great work of art, they encapsulate the maximum depth and the maximum simplicity.’

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