Telling Tales: Fantasy And Fear In Contemporary Design
Victoria and Albert Museum
Until 18 October 2009
Admission free
The fairy tale, which today is the first tutor of children because it was once the first tutor of mankind, secretly lives on in the story. The first true storyteller is, and will continue to be, the teller of fairy tales. (Walter Benjamin)
We live in a material world, surrounded by things. We cannot escape them. Here, I ask: do the things we use shape our lives, or do we shape them? I have my own views on this, but there is no doubt that we do seek objects that add a certain kudos to our lives. This has led to our eschewing of the item in favour of the brand;- why else are Ray Ban sunglasses and Rolex watches more desirable – and expensive – than other brands? Now a group of contemporary designers have sought to create items that they want us to see, quite literally, in a different light. They want us to look at their designed items through the lens of story telling, in particular, the fairy tale.
There is more than a tenuous connection between tales and things. The first story a child hears is likely to be a fairy-tale, extracted from whatever culture he is surrounded by, and possibly shapes his life in the same way as the things he is surrounded by.
Telling Tales: Fantasy and Fear in Contemporary Design (Victoria & Albert Museum) is showcasing furniture, lighting and ceramics by mainly Dutch designers. These items are ‘different’ in that they look outside of mere function, and don’t pander to fashion or the desire for branded items.
They tell us tales through their use of decorative devices, historical allusions or choice of materials. By referring to fairy tales, conventions of status display, or anxieties about mortality – our fantasies and our fears - these objects call on a pool of shared experience. (Press copy)
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The Flg Leaf wardrobe, 2008 Designed by Tord Boontje © Meta |
Atelier Van Lieshout Sensory Deprivation Skull, 2007 Reinforced Fibreglass |
The showcase is divided into three areas. In the Forest Glade you can find the Fig Leaf wardrobe (Tord Boontje, 2008). This is a piece of furniture that reminds us of our pastoral origins, while mocking our need for clothing. Inside the Enchanted Castle is Cinderella table (Jeroen Verhoven, 2005), a grand, Baroque table that would fit awkwardly and gracelessly into the typical contemporary dwelling, rather link the dispossessed young woman after whom it is named. Sensory Deprivation Skull (Joep van Lieshaut, 2007) is a large sculpting in the Heaven and Hell area. It brings to mind that eerie, post-modern catch phrase living in his own head. These are but three of the many objects in this showcase. The exhibition ‘set’ is a nightmarish, claustrophobic walk-through, reminiscent of the movie, The Cabinet Of Dr Caligari. For a creepy, midsummer experience don’t miss this exhibition. It is open until October 18.
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