The Papanek Foundation presents the international
travelling exhibition "Victor Papanek: The Politics of Design", co-curated by Alison J. Clarke, a cooperation between the
Vitra Design Museum and the Barcelona Design Museum, in collaboration with the Victor J. Papanek Foundation, University of
Applied Arts Vienna.
The expansive show presents varied and previously unseen materials from
the Papanek Foundation archive pertaining to design activist Victor Papanek’s lifelong career, highlighting the crucial theme
of design as a political and social tool. Alongside the exploration of Papanek’s links with key thinkers and design figures,
ranging from media theorist Marshall McLuhan, maverick futurist Buckminster Fuller to leading feminist graphic designer Sheila
Levrant de Bretteville, the exhibition casts light on the legacy of 1960s and 1970s activism through the presentation of contemporary
exhibits dealing with politically pertinent issues ranging from state violence, to climate change, bio-synthetics, and the
precariousness of citizenship.
Victor Papanek: The Politics of Design features work from cutting edge practitioners
including: Forensic Architecture; Faber Futures; Flui Colectivo; Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg; Femke Herregraven; NeuroSpeculative
AfroFeminism/Hypen-Labs; Lucy and Jorge Orta; Tomás Saraceno; Maya Jay Varadaraj.
http://ajuntament.barcelona.cat/museudeldisseny/en/exhibition/victor-papanek-politics-design