ABSTRACT
In the design as exhibit move, the spatial quality of an exhibition is at the very centre of an exhibition’s curatorial intent and conceptual development. The design as exhibit also reflects the typically collaborative and multi–authored curatorial process of contemporary practice, which integrates the designer into the earliest conversations and explorations that generate the conceptual intent that will drive the project. The rapidly produced, lo–fi and temporal materiality characteristic of the design as exhibit move is evident in this small, modestly funded yet impactful project. The move was an intuitive response to the challenges inherent in the context of a government–funded festival that focused on events connecting design with manufacturing and industry, rather than exploring design as an ideas–driven practice and a cultural pursuit. The challenge lay in curating a space for an event that filled this ‘conceptual gap’ and brought together the Melbourne community with visiting international designers.
