This morning, the Science Gallery launched their latest exhibition, Design and Violence, in collaboration with the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, where this exhibition has ran online-only since 2013. Design and Violence seeks to draw connections between technology and its uses in oppression, resistance and violence in our everyday lives and on a larger scale, in addition to looking at different facets of design regarding warfare, torture and code, amongst others. The exhibition offers a unique perspective on design and what makes design “good”, despite the intentional or accidental detrimental repercussions.
One of the most striking displays in an AK-47 in a glass case. The AK-47, designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1947, is one of the most recognisable and most lethal assault rifles, prevalent in images in the news, video games like Call of Duty and Advanced Warfare and a variety of films. The design, however, is flawless and remains unchanged since its inception, raising questions on good design and its consequences.
Marijn van der Poll’s “Do Hit Chair” takes a different and more aesthetic approach to design and violence. Sold as a steel cube with a sledgehammer for €4,000, it offers the buyer the opportunity to mold the chair through beating the the steel cube with the sledgehammer. Here, a violent activity creates a beautiful design.
“The Liberator” explores means of violence through the availability of weapons as a result of open sourcing and 3D printing. Designed by Cody Wilson and his company, Defense Distributed, Wilson hoped to raise awareness regarding the easy access of lethal weapons through creating an open source design for a gun, which has already been downloaded 100,000 times. A powerful statement, Wilson successfully raises legitimate concerns about the direction of violence in our society.
While some objects on display are immediately registered as violent objects, others, like “Speculum”, present the viewers with a seemingly mundane object and explain how these objects have been used as a means of violence and oppression in our society.
The Science Gallery’s newest exhibition provides a space for exploration and thought on the role of design and how it perpetuates violence, intentionally or unintentionally. A powerful exhibition that juxtaposes design, violence and beauty and raises questions regarding the direction of our society is poignantly investigated in Design and Violence through a wide variety of mediums.
Design and Violence runs until January, 22nd, 2017. Admission is free.
