NOWHERE NOW HERE
LABoral Centro de Arte y Creación Industrial will inaugurate next Octubre, the 9th Nowhere/Now/Here, an exhibition curated by the creative partnership of Roberto Feo and Rosario Hurtado (El Último Grito) that challenges the perception of design by questioning our relationship with the environment. Taking the viewpoint that our environment has become part of us rather than us being part of it, as its point of departure, Nowhere/Now/ Here encourages us to see design as an integral component of the world-shaping process.
Three key themes of the exhibition take us on an inspiring journey through visions, approaches and personal reflections on how we could change the way we live.
Cultural Resistance challenges the idea of what culture is today and the many ways it can be perceived. It provokes existing systems and proposes new alternatives in socio-economical and religious context. It offers an opportunity to discover new narratives in relation to an object as well as changes in the culture of design profession.
Psychological Exploration takes a look at how we understand an object on a psychological level. The theme examines how we relate and react to an object emotionally and allow for it to translate us into different places and moments.
Material Intervention investigates new tools, materials and technologies applied in design and manufacturing processes today. Moreover, the subject engages with the interference of consumerism and ecology and explores the influence of graphic and spatial intervention on our behaviour and relation to space and object.
Nowhere/Now/Here features more than 60 works ranging from everyday products, fashion, jewellery to installations and live performances by established designers such as Tord Boontje, Jerszy Seymour, Santiago Cirugeda, Dunne & Raby, together with emerging design practitioners including Martino Gamper, Paul Cocksedge, Assa Ashuach, Troika, recent graduates and students such as Raw Edges, Dash Macdonald, Nacho Carbonell among others. A crucial aspect of Nowhere/Now/Here is the contribution of four masters: Ron Arad, Gaetano Pesce, Javier Mariscal and Daniel Weil who contextualize the work of the younger generation trough a series of interviews and some of their works.
The designer’s ideas of a customized, more functional and eventually better world are presented in groups formulated on the notion of non-linear context. One that sees no common discipline, technique or material but creates a unity evoked by the association of ideas.
The conceptual journey arranged by El Último Grito leads through hexagonally shaped and multi-layered spaces designed by Patricia Urquiola studio and the graphic image and vision of Fernando Gutierrez.
Nowhere/Now/Here offers an opportunity to reflect on how design and technology can change lives, systems and the environment. An approach followed by El Último Grito since the beginning of their creative practice, one that moves away from preconceived definitions and searches for new ways of thinking about contemporary design. The curators set out with the idea for the exhibition to be a first step of something to follow. Their aim has been to ‘open a chapter rather than close one’.
THE CURATORS:
Roberto Feo and Rosario Hurtado founded El Último Grito in London in 1997. The work of the creative partnership continuously researches our relationship with objects and culture, exploring them across disciplines in a wide variety of projects ranging from interiors to graphics for clients such as British Airways, Arturo Alvarez, Laminati, Lavazza, Griffin and Selfridges. Their work has been awarded with the “Red Dot Award”, the “Peugeot Design Award” and three times with the “Blueprint 100% Design Award”, it has been exhibited in numerous temporary exhibitions around the world and forms a permanent design collection at the MoMA in New York, the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Science Museum in London, the Kulturhusset in Stockholm and the Stedlijk Museum in Amsterdam among others. El Ultimo Grito is based in Berlin and London.
EXHIBITION DESIGN:
Patricia Urquiola was born in Oviedo, Spain in 1961. She lives and works in Milan. Between 1990 and 1996 she was responsible for the new product development office of De Padova and signs with Vico Magistretti the products: “Flower”, “Loom Sofa”, and “Chaise Longue”. From 1993 to 1996 she had an associate practice with architects de Renzio and Ramerino and was engaged in architectural design of showrooms, restaurants and franchising. In 1996 she became head of the Lissoni Associati design group, working for Alessi, Antares/Flos, Artesano, Bofia, Cappellini, Cassina, Kartell and others. Her products were selected for the Italian Design 2001 Exhibition and The International Design Yearbook. In 2003 she won the Best system Award, IMM Cologne, Germany, with Collection Fjord by Moroso. In 2001 she opens her own Studio at Milan working on product design, architecture, installations and concept creation for companies as Alessi, Moroso, Molteni or Kartell.
Martino Berghinz. Born in Milan, in 1989 architect and designer Martino Berghinz received a work stipend from the Faculdade de Arquitectura Lissabon. In 1992, he graduated from the Politecnico in Milan. His works include the temporary facade of the Institut Art et Ville in Givors (Lyon, France) and the French pavilion at Expo '96 for the Milan Triennial. From 1997 to 2000 he was Senior Designer in the Lissoni Associati office. Since 2000 Berghinz has collaborated with Patricia Urquiola; their joint projects are related to architecture, interior design and decoration.
GRAPHIC DESIGN:
Fernando Gutiérrez. He studied at The London College of Printing and received his Master’s degree in Graphic Design in 1986. He founded the company Gráfica in 1993. Considered to be one of the most innovative forms on the national scene, “Gráfica” was awarded three Premios de Oro by the Sociedad Española de Directores de Arte between 1994 and 1998.
In October 2000, Fernando Gutiérrez was named Associate Director at the anglo-american firm Pentagram Design becoming their nineteenth international partner. Amongst his most important work, mention should be made of his design and artistic direction of weekly supplements for the El País newspaper, and the new visual identity of the Museo el Prado, Madrid. In September 2006 he opened his own studio in London, The Studio of Fernando Gutiérrez, where he works on important projects from England, Paris, Milan, Finland, Madrid and Barcelona.
CURATORS: Roberto Feo & Rosario Hurtado (El Último Grito), London / Berlin
ARTISTS: 5:5 Designers, AA, Amidov, Assa Ashuach, Bruce Bell, Bryony Birkbeck, Tord Boontje, Marta Botas & Germán R. Blanco, David Bowen, Fernando Brizio, Nacho Carbonell, Daniel Charny & Gabriel Klasmer, Santiago Cirugeda, Carl Clerkin, Paul Cocksedge, Dainippon Type Organization, Óscar Díaz, Dunne & Raby, Daniel Eatock, Olivia Flore Decaris, Tiago Fonseca, Fulguro & Thomas Jomini, Architecture Workshop, Martino Gamper, Martí Guixé, Mathias Hahn, Interaction Research Studio, Onkar Kular, Tithi Kutchamuch, Dash MacDonald, Material Beliefs (Auger-Loizeau, Elio Caccavale, Tobie Kerridge, Susana Soares, Aleksandar Zivanovic, David Muth), Alejandro Mazuelas, Alon Meron, mmmm..., Eelko Moorer, Oscar Narud, NB: Studio, Ernesto Oroza, Marc Owens, Pedrita, Laura Potter, Corinne Quin, Random International, Raw Edges Design Studio, Nic Rysenbry, Jerszy Seymour, Bert Simons, Studio Glithero, Yuri Suzuki, Gregor Timlin, Noam Toran, Manel Torres, Maud Traon, Troika, Pablo Valbuena, Greetje van Helmond, Dominic Wilcox, Nick Williamson, Marei Wollersberger, Zaunka
EXHIBITION DESIGN: Patricia Urquiola & Martino Berghinz
GRAPHIC DESIGN: Fernando Gutiérrez
SPECIAL THANKS TO: Ron Arad, Javier Mariscal, Gaetano Pesce & Daniel Weil