Artefacts are generally considered remnants of societies and civilisations long past. Remnants which act as chroniclers, guides and reminders of societies and civilisations long past. Artefacts however needn't be ancient. Nor the society they document. With the exhibition Von Ata bis Zentralkomitee the Kulturhistorisches Museum Rostock explore daily life in the DDR through everyday objects, artefacts, and thereby the nature and reality of state influence and control on everyday life. Von
read moreFew materials can have claimed to have influenced architecture and design in quite the way plywood has. And thereby remained as anonymous as plywood, easily overlooked in public and barely researched in an academic context as it is. With the exhibition Plywood: Material of the Modern World, the V&A Museum London aim to redress both. Plywood: Material of the Modern World at the V&A Museum London "For a long time I have been aware that there wasn't that much published about the history of
read moreAs part of their 50th anniversary celebrations Design School Kolding are staging the exhibition Beyond Icons - New perspectives on design, a showcase of 50 objects which presents a very personal interpretation of good design and thereby challenges popular conventions. Beyond Icons - New perspectives on design at Koldinghus, Kolding Just as defining "good art", "good literature" or "good beer" is an impossibility, so to is "good design" undefinable. In a general sense. There is design that is
read more“What are you going to do this summer, Amory?”, Tom D’Invilliers asks of Amory Blaine in F Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise. “Don’t ask me", comes the somewhat languid reply, "same old things, I suppose. A month or two in Lake Geneva — I’m counting on you to be there in July, you know — then there'll be Minneapolis, and that means hundreds of summer hops, parlor-snaking, getting bored....." Sorry Amory, but you'll have to survive the magnificence of Lake Geneva on your own, would have
read moreWith the exhibition 21 Common Things designer Thomas Schnur explores his personal relationship with everyday objects. And in doing so the concept of functionality. Thomas Schnur - 21 Common Things "The whole world's going home with blue plastic bags" observes Malcolm Middleton in his 2008 song, "Blue Plastic Bags" The blue plastic bag as a unifying object. The blue plastic bag as a metaphor for contemporary urban life. The blue plastic bag as a symbol of our social homogeneity. "The whole
read moreUnderstanding materials has helped contemporary society develop as it has. And remains as relevant today as ever. If not more so. Ergo material education is as relevant as ever. If not more so. Object Lessons. The Story of Material Education in 8 Chapters at the Werkbundarchiv - Museum der Dinge Berlin "We daily call a great many things by their names, without ever inquiring into their nature and properties; so that, in reality, it is only their names and the things themselves with which we
read moreA common misconception is that the term "designer" in "designer furniture" means "exclusive". It doesn't. It just means that a designer has invested time in creating a product that does something new or which represents a further development of existing concepts. Designer furniture is however meant to be used everywhere, everyday, by everyone. Such as the Tom Vac by Ron Arad for Vitra. You could just use it in your dinning room or on your balcony. Or.....
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