Adorno is pleased to announce ‘Animism’, a landmark exhibition of contemporary design and crafts taking place at Alcova Milano 2024, in a grand room of the historical Villa Bagatti Valsecchiin conjunction with Milano Design Week 2024.

The exhibition will investigate the deeper meaning of objects, through the lens of Animism. We talk about pieces as if they’re alive as if they’re people – the sofa goes well with the rug, the lamp has a lot of character, and so on – yet rarely do we entertain the notion that they might truly possess life. While such musings may seem reminiscent of childish fables, throughout nearly all of human history, the animist perspective – that everything, from rocks to rivers, is alive – was the only perspective. Now, the realm of science is steadily expanding the definition of life, challenging our ability to delineate between what is sentient and what is not, beings and things, subjects and objects.

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Organized as a banquet of design, this exhibition features eight chairs seated around a dinner table set with curated treasures, ranging from crafted silver cutlery to hand-blown glasses. Throughout the room pieces are breathing with life; sassy vases are wearing jewelry, thoughtful mirrors reflect, humble tapestries hang, lamps sing silently, and cabinets dance, all engaging in a profound dialogue stretching beyond materials, colors, and culture. Animism invites visitors to engage with these pieces as fellow guests at a gathering. Engage them in conversation, learn their preferences, and befriend them.

The exhibition hints at a path toward a sustainable future rooted in the wisdom of the past. By dissolving boundaries between the animate and inanimate we redefine our relationship to the material world. We envision a future where objects aren’t just commodities to acquire and dispose of but beings we can know, befriend, and even fall in love with. Animism is an invitation to experience the world with wonder and reverence and to care for the objects that share our lives as if they were our kin.

YEAR:

2024

COLLABORATORS: