Two exciting projects showcasing world-leading design as a means for confronting global challenges
The Polish Pavilion - WINDOWS FOR UKRAINE: POETICS OF NECESSITY 1- 25 June
In times of crisis, especially when available resources change and shrink, the world relies on new communities and new processes. Designers have to divert from aesthetics to functionality, but still remain creative in their work. This exhibition aims to reinterpret objects and tools that spontaneously emerge in grassroots humanitarian aid activities.
The exhibition, organised by Adam Mickiewicz Institute, and designed by Zofia Jaworowska, Michał Sikorki, and Petro Vladimirov, will explore how unexpected objects such as reclaimed windows emerge from the world of reuse, and crisis collaboration. Here, a building element, the humble window, transforms from waste into a chance for safety. It becomes a transmitter of new relationships, a barometer of the most urgent needs. The window serves as a starting point for a discussion about new aesthetics in design in times of sudden geopolitical shifts.
MALTA PAVILION – URBAN FABRIC 1 - 25 June
Conceived through a fusion of art, architecture and innovative design, the installation creates a playful labyrinth, derived from the original layout of ancient Maltese villages. The piece merges traditional city planning with the Phoenician-Maltese tradition of fabric production and dyeing of the multiple shades of Phoenician purple. The exhibition will hold the central spot in Somerset House’s courtyard and create a 'street-like' layout that enables the audience to meet and collaborate while interacting directly with the installation, which strives to encourage discourse around the need for sustainable design. Many of the materials from Urban Fabric will be repurposed for a new installation in Valletta in 2024.