Yesterday was insightful. The team got to meet the curators for the Haussman's exhibition coming up at the Contemporary. It was indeed necessary because I did not realize how much planning went into exhibitions.
There was a lot of conversation about post-modernism, the Haussman's play on functional and non-functional objects and their response to what the modernist society was saying about their work and for the first time, I felt like I saw my "Architecture in context" module at university come to life, I was standing in the midst of a radical era, I could see the counter argument against ornament and crime, I was standing among history and trust me I wanted to touch, smell, sit, run around and more, why, because I was experiencing architecture, although not fully, but you understand my point.
The curators had worked with the Haussman's previously and that detail is seen in the exhibition space. They had a different understanding to what the exhibition was because of that background knowledge. I also got to see other members involved in the process and hearing their comments on the works, meetings and concept was refreshing.
Obviously, since the Haussman's do architecture and furniture, there lies a challenge in exhibiting. How can the audience engage? To what extent can they interact? These were questions the team asked after meeting the curators. The idea of knowing and understanding, the question of how much people have to know in order to engage. Towards the end, an observation was made about how knowledge is a process, it is giving the audience a handful and leaving space for that knowledge to grow and for them to form their own interpretations. It was indeed healthy and it got me to think about reactions.
PS: Today is very exciting because we get to meet Pia Camil, the artist and ask questions as well as go on a lengthy walk through the exhibitions. I am definitely looking forward to this.
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