04762 - Outfitting and Museography

Learning outcomes

The knowledge of the most important historical and contemporary experiences in the field of Exhibition Design is the fundamental basis to create a coherent program, to be verified through project work, which gives ''meaning'' to objects, relationships and space.

Course contents

Exhibition Design is one of the possible fields for Architects.

In fact, it is a vast field involving other disciplines - some linked to history (conservation or archaeology), others to communication (graphics or semiotics), others still to more technical (lighting or industrial design) or commercial (marketing or commodity economics) areas.

The course aims to investigate this branch of design by viewing it as a relational space between Objects and Subjects, thus going beyond a rigid classification of the 'products' to display and overcoming the conventional distinction between container and contents. The objects/subjects which comprise the complexity of an exhibition space are correlated among themselves and with their context, by viewing the exhibition path as a narrative and evocative device, and considering graphic communication as its essential punctuation. The exhibition path is - in every respect - a ceremonial path, which gives the exhibition its theatrical and scenographic appearance, and at the same time builds a logical-consequential scheme through the elements of composition: rhythm, pauses, analogy, dissonance, pattern and variation. Graphics are another important aspect: not only for their educational function of organising the pedagogic elements which help the exhibition to be understood, but also because - now more than ever - they convey the Identity system of the exhibition event.

Exhibitions and Museums , as event types, are generally distinguished by their duration: the former is mainly conceived as a temporary event, whereas the latter has a longer life span. But where is the boundary between the two events, when some ''well-established'' museums start to cyclically rethink their collections? Furthermore, where can boundaries be drawn if ''new'' exhibition tools are brought into the picture, such as installations, performances, projections and virtual tours? In the present “civilisation of the image”, where access to information - even if banalised - is constantly increasing, the Web makes even short-lived events last forever. The scope of Exhibition Design, therefore, keeps changing, especially when it needs to marry with the constellation of contemporary arts or with productive and commercial sectors. However, there is an important tradition, made of a large number of well-established 20th century examples, within which the Italian architectural scene plays a major role, and which must be recognised in order to stem the ''sensationalist'' approaches.

PROJECT WORK

Project work will be defined by the beginning of the course.

Readings/Bibliography

Luca Molinari, Laura Lazzaroni (a cura di), The Art of Display: L'arte di mettere in mostra, Skira, Milano, 2006;

Bruno Munari, Da cosa nasce cosa, appunti per una metodologia progettuale, Laterza, Bari, 2000. (prima ed. 1981)

Mario Mastropietro (a cura di), Progettare mostre. Dieci lezioni di allestimento, Lybra Immagine, Milano, 1991

Sergio Polano (a cura di), Mostrare : L'allestimento in Italia dagli anni Venti agli anni Ottanta, Lybra Immagine, Milano, 1988;

Allestimenti/Exhibit design. Rassegna n.10 – numero monografico, 1982;

Anty Pansera, Storia e Cronaca della Triennale, Longanesi e C., Milano, 1978;

Richard P. Lohse, Neue Ausstellungsgestaltung /Nouvelles conceptions de l'exposition/ New design in exhibitions, Verlag fur architektur, Zurigo, 1956.

----

Tomàs Maldonado, Disegno industriale: un riesame, Feltrinelli, Milano, 2008 (prima ed. 1976)

Gabriella d'Amato, Storia del design, Bruno Mondadori, Milano, 2005.

Teaching methods

The course involves a series of lectures, some reading and project work. The lectures will deal with the fundamentals of the discipline, and will also include comparative analyses of examples and similar experiences with respect to the project work theme. In particular, lessons will take the form of seminars so as to favour the students' individual critical and dialectical contribution. At the same time, the progress of project work will be assessed. For these reasons, and in order to enhance the effective development of project work, attendance is recommended.

In addition, at least one visit to an exhibition of primary importance will be organised for the students enrolled in the course.

Assessment methods

Students will be asked to carry out project work simulating the creation of an exhibition event and its design. The first aim is to start programmatic thinking on the subject and themes of the exhibition, to then translate into an exhibition project.

The project will be based on the creation of a narrative path and on the complex relationships that develop between the different elements, including graphic and visual communication elements. The project, conceived as an iterative process and as a synthesis of the topics discussed during the course, will involve the use of tools from architecture, photography and model design, taking into account the most appropriate graphic techniques for the theme.

The graphic and analytical materials necessary for the project will be provided during the course.

The final evaluation will depend on the quality of the submitted work, as well as on the discussion of topics dealt with during the course or in the bibliography.

Office hours

See the website of Roberto Fabbri