flexibility design in a fast changing society, turin, italy

last week the exhibition ‘flexibility – design in a fast-changing society’ opened in turin, italy, the show is one of the many events taking place in the city this year in conjunction with it being named the ‘design world capital for 2008’.

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‘flexibility’ consists of nine projects by international designers installed at a former prison ex carceri ‘le nuove’. ross lovegrove, patricia urquiola, sigi moeslinger and masamichi udagawa of the studio antenna design, bertjan pot, clemens weisshaar and reed kram, ana mir and emili padrós of emiliana, fernando brízio, giulio iacchetti,  were invited to create pieces in response to theme of ‘flexibility’  and the ability to rapidly adapt oneself to today’s fast-changing society. the exhibition’s is curated by guta moura guedes, from portugal, the director of lisbon’s biennale experimentadesign.

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the location: ex-carceri ‘le nuove’ today, we all continuously modify our behaviour in response to change. design, the work of designing, is a discipline whose very nature adopts a flexible attitude as it searches for valid answers that can survive the changeability of things by adapting them, and thus represents a valid help in the ongoing confrontation with change.  the location of the exhibition, therefore, should not be a surprise: the ex-carceri ‘le nuove,’ a former prison provides an example of how a structure can radically modify its destined use, from a place of closure by antonomasia to the expression of aperture towards citizens, tourists, the world in general. 

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‘flexibility’  unfolds along the corridors and prison cells, creating an itinerary in three stages with a background of sounds created by the musical research that has been conducted by two sound designers. the effect is strident and dramatic: the representation of flexibility and the constriction of the location dialog together, creating an unusual conceptual oxymoron. in the circular area of the panopticum, the central area from which the detention wings branch out, the exhibition introduces the visitor to the many meanings of flexibility today. the men’s wing features examples of efficient design of objects and solutions in terms of their adaptability and versatility, in our homes, in the work place, in the city. the exhibition concludes in the women’s wing, with the nine installations that were created ad hoc by nine emerging designers in the world of design.

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