Hyper Links

"Architecture starts when you carefully put two bricks together. There it begins." -Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

Since the days of Bauhaus, I am not sure that professional designers have held any significant design revolutions. Though we should probably not forget the postmodernism movement during the 1980's that most of us were happy to see go away. Perhaps the exhibit at the MoMA when Phillip Johnson gathered deconstructive architectural projects might count as the last major movement. But I think there might be a few more we could add.

For instance, a prolific designer friend from London, Sebastian Noel, recently informed me of a small exhibit that his studio Troika is involved in called "Hyper Links."

And, closer to home, much to my surprise, The Art Institute of Chicago is hosting an avant-garde show, inviting 32 globally renowned designers and artists to exhibit their architectural projects, which are distantly removed from fine arts and the realm of the contemporary.

Although intimately featured at Renzo Piano's New Wing, the exhibit should not be overlooked for its heroic intention, which makes us aware and think, "do the forms of contemporary designs follow function anymore?" Furthermore, I even asked myself, "are we limiting capacities of designs by believing in historical definitions of design?" After my inspiring viewing, I felt recharged to accept unconventional design products as lifestyles evolved from the days of Bauhaus. The visionaries can fantasize and evoke us, and professional designers should be encouraged to do so. If one is servicing predictable objectives, one is a simple designer, much different from these visionaries

I thank The Art Institute of Chicago for taking a chance and exhibiting an incredible show, an unconventional art exhibition with international museum standards. The show is continuing until May: please check their website and visit. One might say "how weird!" but the odd representations are more real than our perceptions, and this might not only be a present demonstration but also a future movement.