intermediate zone, art, design and society. ACVIC, Centre d'Arts Contemporànies (23.02-19.05.2012)

this exhibition is an heterogeneous and intentionally dispersed collection of projects which, from a design perspective, tackles a number of questions regarding life within society, starting out from a different set of parameters to those we might usually expect. Supposedly the first priority of design should be "people" but in practice this is not often so clear. Many other interests are mixed up and highlighted. The exhibition aims to offer an open and complex vision of an attitude and a way of doing things with the deliberate belief that the role and the involvement of people in the construction of the environment should be much larger, much more intense and much more pleasurable than it usually is. Some would like to think that despite the apparent hegemony that the image holds within the field of design (and in any other field), we are also witnessing a growing awareness and appreciation of the fact that the most important object is not just the final object, but what it can promote, generate and catalyse. The selection of pieces for the exhibition, inevitably partial and personal, attempts to demonstrate this broad vision through projects from very different contexts and with very different ambitions, dealing with various aspects of life such as health, food, the elderly, how to decide on the use of urban space, the 15-M movement, relations between locals and newcomers, labour relations between first World countries and others with cheaper workforces, or responses to "natural" disasters. The exhibition consists of 16 pieces in total from the following artists, designers, architects, activists and companies: Artlantique, Basurama, Camper, Emili Padrós, Gemma Busquets, Ikea/UNICEF, Janga Mwendo y Tammy Petro (Katrina Furniture Project), Lee Kiseung, Mariscal, Martí Guixé, Nanimarquina, Recetas Urbanas – Santiago Cirugeda, Shigeru Ban Architects, Makea tu vida, Laura Arqués, Marta Petreñas y Maximiliano Scaglione, y Pablo España (with a file compiled from many different authors).