: PLASTIC FANTASTIC

D MUSEUM presents PLASTIC FANTASTIC, a unique exhibition showcasing designs born from the artistic imagination of international designers and the unlimited possibilities of plastic, from September 14, 2017 to March 4, 2018.

PLASTIC FANTASTIC illustrates the magical journey of plastic, the substance sometimes described as the 20th century’s miracle material, as it entered the public realm and brought such wide-ranging transformation to our everyday lives. The exhibition offers an overview of more than 2,700 products, items of furniture, lights, graphic designs, and photographs produced over the past half-century via the individuality and innovative spirit of around 40 international creators. One of key highlights of PLASTIC FANTASTIC is its exploration of the close, decades-long collaboration between giants of international design and Kartell, the leading Italian design brand that, for three generations, has helped develop a new identity for plastic beyond that of the product of the single-use consumption system. At the same time, the exhibition in partnership with Kartell conveys a sense of Italy’s uniquely humorous and bold design by a selection, handpicked from a vast archive, of remarkable advertising graphics, illustrations, and photographs that capture plastic furniture in novel ways from the perspectives of exceptional photographers and artists.

PLASTIC FANTASTIC consists largely six broad sections, offering a variety of perspectives. The Beginning of a Dream, Polymer, is an installation work that continues from the museum entrance into the exhibition halls, symbolizing the pure qualities and form of plastic before it acquires shapes and colors, and giving a sense of the texture and characteristics of the material. On level M1, the main exhibition begins with the section Bring Colors to Domesticity, showing how plastic, after starting out as an industrial material, entered use in furniture and tableware thanks to advances in manufacturing technology and the introduction of color, becoming a familiar part of everyday life. Also on level M1 is Molding New Living, a section vividly illustrating how plastic has evolved with changing times and social trends, such as the space age and the culture of outdoor life. Up a beautifully illuminated staircase lies level M2 and Design Becomes Everyday Landscape, a section with photographs reinterpreting plastic products not in terms of fixed function but through the unique perspectives of artists, and offering a glimpse of the philosophy and passion of the designers featured in this exhibition. When Designers Dream showcases the imaginative and highly individual works of contemporary designers fascinated by the exceptional material qualities of plastic. Finally, the Constantly Evolving section uses video and installation works to express hopes and dreams for plastic as the material develops onward and into new realms.

In same spirit of the etymology of the word plastic, “to mold,” PLASTIC FANTASTIC offers a wide-ranging illustration of the organic evolution produced by the interplay between this endlessly flexible, ever-changing material and artistic inspiration. The exhibition reveals the magical moment when the imaginations of master designers come together with plastic to produce pure innovation.

Participating designers
Ron Arad, Sergio Asti, Gae Aulenti, Mario Bellini, Olaf von Bohr, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, Achille Castiglioni, Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, Centrokappa, Antonio Citterio, Gino Colombini, Joe Cesare Colombo, Anna Castelli Ferrieri, Front, Ignazio Gardella, Chosun Hong, Isao Hosoe, Patrick Jouin, Ferruccio Laviani, Piero Lissoni, Vico Magistretti, Alberto Meda, Alessandro Mendini, Nendo, Ludovica & Roberto Palomba, Yeojoo Park, Christophe Pillet, Eugeni Quitllet, Franco Raggi, Paolo Rizzatto, Richard Sapper, Showmakers, Ettore Sottsass, Philippe Starck, Giotto Stoppino, Patricia Urquiola, Marcel Wanders, Tokujin Yoshioka, Marco Zanuso