see••ds is pleased to present masters of disguise as part of brompton design district 2019, an exhibition that seeks to interpret this year’s theme nature/nurture by looking at the notion of human nature.
in the current age of the anthropocene, designers need to reflect not only on their work, but also at their own identity as creative professionals. who we are and how we choose to represent ourselves to the world is deeply rooted in how we interpret the relationship to the environment. this is the essence of human nature.
masters of disguise will explore this concept by exhibiting the work of key contemporary artists/designers including jochen holz, martino gamper and sabine marcelis, and more who have been invited to design masks that address questions of identity, visibility and image. together with their interpretation of their individual identity – their ‘human nature’ – in the form of a mask. questions of identity, performance and display are at the core of this exhibition. in the current era of hyper-visibility and obsession with image culture, a mask is a powerful metaphor for the changes of identity that we perform in our everyday interactions across different media and realities.
during the exhibition, a performative dinner will be hosted at the space where artists will be playing with their masks in a social gathering where the expression of hiding/revealing an identity will be presented to the hosts. the exhibition setting will be specifically created for the occasion using low-impact materials. artists/designers will also be contributing to the exhibition with a number of objects that will be used during the performative opening event (including furniture, lights, tableware, cutlery, glasses, vases etc).
curated by m–l–xl / m–l–xl is a design studio that works across different disciplines, including furniture design, installations, type design and publishing. the studio, with offices in venice and london, was founded by marco campardo and lorenzo mason, and focuses on research, experimenting with languages, techniques and materials.
14-22 september 2019
mon-sun 10am-6pm
35-36 thurloe place
south kensington
sw7 2hp
tube > south kensington
#ldf19 #mastersofdisguise #seedslondonstrong>
this year fendi and design miami/ celebrate their ten-year anniversary. for the occasion, the luxury maison presents the shapes of water, a project by sabine marcelis dedicated to rediscovering one of the elements fendi cherishes most: water. using water as a design tool, marcelis magnifi es its delicate beauty by realizing ten fountains inspired by ten of the most iconic symbols of craftsmanship and the logo of the historic roman house.
representing fendi’s historical identity, marcelis’s ten fountains, made of cast resin, each feature a new version of the maison’s symbol. the fountains are exhibited on a plinth of travertine, the same stone that is found in the palazzo della civiltà italiana, an emblematic monument of fendi’s architectural history and its headquarters since 2015. a piece inspired by the peekaboo bag is placed at the entrance of the booth—the brand’s iconic bag
celebrates this anniversary year.
it is through clean, soft lines and the use of such ethereal materials as polished resin and water in contrast with the historical travertine stone and warm colors reminiscent of the roman skies that marcelis’s fountains represent the perfect fusion among the historical, creative, and aesthetic legacy of fendi and its courage to provoke.
born in holland and raised in new zealand, marcelis explores material properties through the manipulation of color and light, creating unexpected optical effects and uncommon chromatic shades. she searches for the limits of physical characteristics and production processes, which result in minimal yet highly aesthetic objects and installations.
a cutting edge: show, bar, hang out, experience, meet, greet and creative hub all-in-one.
bar anne is designed by space encounters, an award winning architectural firm from amsterdam. merged with a spectacular installation by children of the light. the interior is created by some of the biggest break out talents including rick tegelaar, vantot, mae engelgeer, klaas kuiken, dirk van der kooij, muller van severen, jolan van der wiel, handmade industrials, jelle mastenbroek, sabine marcelis, brit van nerven, kranen/gille and aart van asseldonk.
bar anne is far from a regular exhibition. it is not pretentious; it is very easy going. it is low profile instead of high profile. it’s open and not restrictive. it is inclusive instead of exclusive. why? because all the designs are in use. you can try them, test them, sit on them, jump on them and even sleep on them. be our guest.
bar anne stays open when regular presentations close. we start at 11, serve lunch around noon, an aperitivo to get going, a dinner when hungry, a cocktail hour to shake things up and of course there will be music and dancing. till late. but we do not only feed the hungry or thirsty design lovers, together with frame magazine, bar anne hosts a series of talks and discussions about all aspects of design. just relax and listen.
bar anne is centrally located right between the famous zona tortona and the city centre in the historical museo diocesano. this special venue will be transformed into a brand-new hotspot in town welcoming everyone who’s curious and creative. open tuesday 17 till sunday 22 april for drinks, bites, music and more from 11 am to 1 am. anne is a curator, writer, entrepreneur, ambassador of the dutch design scene and mc of bar anne.
