Image Credit : Nicole England
Project Overview
The Design Wall was commissioned by the National Gallery of Victoria for the exhibition Melbourne Now (22 November 2013 - 23 March 2014) and is a celebration of art, architecture, design, performance and cultural practice in Melbourne. Curated by Simone LeAmon and designed by Edmund Carter and Simone LeAmon of Carter LeAmon, the Design Wall presented near 700 objects born of 40 design projects by 21 Melbourne design studios. Exploring the aesthetic of the production line, the layering and interlinking of design thematic, and the cultural context of the NGV, the Design Wall was a visually arresting, cross-media platform for the celebration of Melbourne's contemporary design capital.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Simone LeAmon and Edmund Carter.
Curated by Simone LeAmon exhibiting work by Brightgreen; Catalyst Design Group and Knog; Charlwood Design for Oates; CobaltNiche for Yarra Trams, KeepCup and Associated Controls; Crumpler; Demain International for BluCave; Design+Industry for Quickboats and Billi; David Flynn for Willow Ware Australia; Dale Hardiman; Helen Kontouris; Tom Kovac; Adam Lynch; Outerspace Design for b.box; Nick Rennie; Rip Curl; Ronstan; Sherrin; Sprocket; Belinda Stening and Curve magazine. Installed with the assistance of the National Gallery of Victoria.
Project Brief
An immersive and inclusive exhibition experience, the Design Wall provided a rich and compelling insight into Melbourne’s contemporary design practice at this moment.
Communicating design’s relationship to serial production the Design Wall featured a curatorial selection of design projects commonly associated with everyday life. Curated to five themes, the Design Wall revealed how Melbourne designers are embedding serial design production with ideas, meaning and emotion. Uncovering narratives which are unique and distinct to Melbourne and Australia the collection of projects assembled in the Design Wall demonstrated how ‘place’ finds its way into product design through design research, narrative, material and technical knowledge.
The Design Wall was challenged with the requirement for 40 vastly different objects, of varying size and weight, to be installed onto a pre-existing plywood-faced wall measuring 15 metres in length and 7 metres in height. With no off the shelf mounting solutions suitable Carter LeAmon designed a modular, low cost, easily fabricated, reusable universal mounting system.
Project Innovation/Need
The Design Wall represented a new direction for the National Gallery of Victoria in terms of exhibiting contemporary product and industrial design for the first time. A legacy project, near to 750,000 visitors attended the NGV over 3 months to view the exhibition. Delivering an unprecedented experience of contemporary Melbourne product design in a cultural institution the Design Wall will continue to have an impact on the NGV’s relationship with its audiences and the design community. Introducing 40 design projects by 21 Melbourne design studios, the Project moved people to see design as having both creative and cultural significance.
Installing 40 design projects, culminating in near to 700 objects of various dimensions and weights to the gallery wall necessitated a clever, adaptable, low cost mounting system. Carter LeAmon worked closely with local fabricators and suppliers to design a universal mount that is modular and reusable. Comprising a steel mount in 3 sizes and timber dowel customised in 7 ways - made possible 21 mount combinations, allowing objects to be mounted modestly and securely. This flexibility enhanced the curatorial objectives and experience of the exhibit, objects were mounted with consideration to adjacency, height and protrusion from the wall.
Design Challenge
The Design Wall brought together an eclectic collection of Melbourne designed products including: wetsuits, sailboat hardware, taps, power tools, food coolers, tram handles, chairs and bike lights in a visually arresting exhibition design. Delivered prudently, with strict funding, the Design Wall facilitated exceptional exposure and media opportunity for the National Gallery of Victoria, the 21 participating design studios and Melbourne design in general. A legacy project instating design’s social, cultural and economic importance, the Design Wall garnered national and international exposure delivering near to one-quarter of Melbourne Now’s press and continues to be experienced through documentation created by the NGV.
Sustainability
The temporary nature of exhibitions means exhibition design disposes much solid waste. Determined to minimise the impact of the Design Wall, Carter LeAmon developed a scheme which retained the existing finish of the gallery wall - 85 sq metres of hoop-pine ply. Further designing a bespoke modular, universal mounting system for accommodating the 670 objects of various dimensions and weight. Designed for re-use the mounting system takes storage into consideration, able to be dis-assembled and stacked consuming approximately 2 cubic metres. The steel mounts were fabricated locally, the dowel milled from environmentally sustainable resources with FSC, AFCS and PEFC certification.
Tags
Installation, Display, Exhibit & Set Design
This award celebrates innovative and creative design for a temporary building, interior, exhibition, fixture or interactive element. Consideration given to materials, finishes, signage and experience.
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