Design and The Elastic Mind
“A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.”
Oliver Wendell
Adaptability has always been a distinctive feature of human intelligence, but as MoMA’s new exhibition “Design and the Elastic Mind” claims, recent developments in science call for faster — and, indeed, more elastic — modes of social response.
Paola Antonelli’s exhibitions for MoMA often feel like a science fair planted in a museum. Her current show is no is no exception, showcasing the fertile relationships between design, engineering science, sculpture, architecture, and computer programming.
Beginning with a display on nano structures and concluding with one about social and global networks, this ambitious exhibition examines the various scales on which our contemporary lives are led, and the way design can translate technological innovation into objects of everyday use.
Similarly, Joris Laarman’s “Bone Chair” was created with computer software that mimics the creation of human bones. The weight and stresses on a typical chair are programmed into the computer, which then works out an appropriate “bone” structure, churning out a series of increasingly refined prototypes
With backgrounds in sculpture and engineering, Hoberman is a kind of live prototype for the ideal Elastic Mind contributor. He specializes in the design of transformable objects at scales ranging from toys to tents to full-scale architectural enclosures. His kinetic sculpture “Emergent Surface” (see photo galery below) was commissioned by MoMA specifically for the show and he discusses its origins and ideals.
Peter Hall is a critic who has written extensively about product design, data visualization and emergent cartographic practices. His essay “Critical Visualization” is featured in the exhibition catalog. On opening night he weighs in some of the work in the “Data Visualization” section of the show and outlines his essay on critical visual practice.
Paola Antonelli began her curatorial career at MoMA in 1995 with Mutant Materials in Contemporary Design. Her exhibitions are consistently popular, challenging and expansive.
Check the photo gallery below you’ll find more on the product exhibited in the show
Joelle’s Tips:
The Museum: The Museum of Modern Art
(212) 708-9400
11 West 53 Street,
between Fifth and Sixth avenues
New York, NY 10019-5497
The Exhibition: “Design and the Elastic Mind ” February 24/ May 12. View the exhibition on -line
The Interview: Interview on exhibition opening night with Paula Antonelli : She reflects on opening night and our emotional attachments to objects.
Wode Paint Boudicca & Wode Scent Boudicca
