Exhibition - Materials Gallery
Material has traditionally been something to which design is applied. New methods in the fields of nanotechnology have rendered material as the object of design development. Instead of designing a thing, we design a designing thing. In the process we have created superhero substances endowed with superlative characteristics, from the hyperbolic to the almost human. Materials now have strength, agility, memory, intelligence. Mere matter no longer, materials have become active carriers of meaning and program.The world of material science is experiencing an incredible shift. Materials are becoming as much a project as the product that they will eventually be applied. The material economies gallery explores the exciting innovations in fields such as polymer science, nanotechnology and biomimetics. The materials on display not only explain how characteristics have been combined to make these ‘superhero’ materials, but also how such innovations are - and will - change our lives.
While entering the Materials Gallery, visitors see the Electro Luminescent film. On the right, Self-Healing Plastic, Fire Resistant fabrics and a fabric treated with a Nanotechnology process. Photos Courtesy Institute without Boundaries
Each material in the gallery is shaped into poetic terms or words which immediately describe their hyperbolic abilities. Generally, the room appears to come directly from the comic tradition with yellow walls, bright colours, and onomatopoeic phrases.
The climate Control Fabric which regulates body temperature on the left and visitors reading captions on various materials. Photos Courtesy Institute without Boundaries
The room shows examples from several material types, including some that resist fire, self-clean, mimic nature, cushion, biodegrade, look beautiful, construct, are incredibly light, and employ nanotechnology.
Audio Commentary by:
Bruce Mau
Gisele Gass (IwB 2004) - 1
Gisele Gass - 2
Explore the Exhibition:
Exhibition Introduction
Urbanization
Movement
Information
The Image
Markets
Energy
Materials
Military
Manufacturing
Living
Wealth & Politics
