NEWS
Old furniture gets a new life in ‘100 Chairs in 100 Days’
Renowned cross-disciplinary artist Martino Gamper brings new life to donated objects as part of his 100 Chairs in 100 Days exhibition.
Now on at RMIT’s Design Hub, the exhibition uncovers the stories hidden within objects.
Well known for his culturally responsive approach to design, London-based Gamper came to major acclaim with the original 100 Chairs in 100 Days, where he collected disused chairs from the city’s alleyways and friends’ homes and reassembled them — one per day — into poetic and often humorous forms.
Shown in Australia for the first time, 100 Chairs in 100 Days is an experiment in transforming limitations into possibilities.
Drawing on the history of furniture, the project has toured the globe, with the 100th chair produced anew in each location.
For the Australian exhibition, Gamper will create a yet-to-be-unveiled 100th chair, made in Melbourne and fabricated in a single day, using only found materials, structures and designs.
The exhibition incorporates a workshop — in the form of an ideas exchange — where he will discuss his process-driven practice with local design researchers and practitioners.
Design Hub Curator Fleur Watson said she was delighted to be working with Gamper.
“The exhibition’s objects speak to ideas that move well beyond the fetishisation of the designer chair and are imbued with narrative, poetics, humour and cross-cultural references,” she said.
“Martino’s visit also provides an important opportunity to engage our design community with his thinking and research, via participation in an invited workshop for local practitioners.
“This kind of exchange is central to our intent at Design Hub to curate exhibitions and programs that focus on design ideas and experimentation.”
100 Chairs in 100 Days is part of the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival Cultural Program Project Series and is on at the Design Hub until Saturday 9 April.
100 Chairs in 100 Days
A project by Martino Gamper
Collection loaned by Nina Yashar, Nilufar Gallery
Design by Åbäke
Curated for RMIT Design Hub by Fleur Watson
Creative Production by Nella Themelios
Story: Louise Handran
Artist Martino Gamper created his 100th chair in Melbourne, using found and donated materials at Gossard workshop, RMIT. Photo: Tobias Titz.