In search of new answers to this question, Furnishing Utopia created an open prompt inviting a group of independent creative minds:  Starting with a simple act of presence and noticing, create a public installation that provokes an act of sharing in one’s neighborhood. 

The group drew inspiration from the communal values of the Shakers as well as the counter-cultural DIY movement of the 60’s and 70’s - The Whole Earth Catalog, Enzo Mari's Autoprogettazione, Victor Papanek’s Nomadic Furniture, Ken Issacs’ etc.  These past examples represented ideas for democratization of design that Furnishing Utopia aims to rekindle and expand upon.

This debut installment of "PUBLIC ACCESS" features works from 37 international designers, from 19 cities, 12 countries exploring ways in which design can inspire communal acts of sharing.  The resulting work is an evolving array of offerings designed and built in situ - some sharing community resources, some connecting with nature, or others igniting a sense of wonderment.  All respond to their unique locations with an invitation for the public to engage freely.

Part 1 exhibit/ On view from 5/18 - 6/3 

An Indoor exhibit at Head Hi which will serve as the hub showing all 36 PUBLIC ACCESS projects photo-documented in their chosen environment from various parts of the world. The visual exhibit will be displayed alongside reference materials and open source instructions, as well as a curation of related books by Head Hi. 

Head Hi, 146 Flushing ave, Brooklyn, NY. 

Part 2 exhibit / On view from 5/18 - 5/25

An Outdoor exhibit with select pieces will be installed at Brooklyn Greenway Initiative’s Naval Cemetery Landscape, a former hospital cemetery and now turned into a native plant nature reserve serving the Navy Yard neighborhood. Viewers will get to explore and engage in an immersive natural environment.

Naval Cemetery Landscape, 63 Williamsburg St W, Brooklyn, NY 11249.

OUR APPROACH

We connect designers to participate in research workshop exploring various sites working with cultural and educational institutions to gain a deeper understanding of design culture and history.

• LEARNING FROM THE PAST

  Through immersive explorations of historical, cultural and creative movements and places to gain deeper perspectives.

• ENGAGING WITH THE PRESENT

  We create objects, exhibitions and events to facilitate engagement

  between designers, institutions, industry and the public.

• DESIGNING FOR THE FUTURE

  We apply optimism and a holistic approach to design that

  transcends time and obsolescence, provoke the status quo in the

  collective pursuit of a more perfect way of life.

OUR METHOD

We organize research workshop working with cultural and educational institutions to gain a deeper understanding of everything. The immersive experience brings about in-depth conversations and dialogue between designers, curators and instructors.

• HANCOCK SHAKER VILLAGE, 2015

  The inaugural Furnishing Utopia workshop, which kickstarted the project and collective as a whole, took place at the Hancock Shaker Village in Massachusetts.

• MOUNT LEBANON SHAKER VILLAGE, 2016-2018

  Returning several times to the Shaker Village with the expanding group of designers, the archival research has expanded to neighboring communities such as Mount Lebanon.

• AMERICAN MODERNISM - MIDWEST TOUR, 2019

  Expanding our investigative scope, our latest workshop was held in the midwestern region of the United States, with a specific focus on the birth of American Modernism.