There has been much talk in recent years about the convergence of the creative disciplines. The divisions that once differentiated art, design, fashion, and even advertising from each other are now said to be dissolving under the influence of the digital revolution and other cultural forces. To be sure, the impact of these changes has not been limited to the arts; the boundaries that once existed among all sorts of categorizations have similarly eroded in the recent past.
Take day and night, for example: traditionally what people routinely did during the so-called waking hours was rather distinct from what they did after dark. Now we can sometimes barely tell the difference between the two as we check our email or do some online shopping in the depth of night. Same with the physical setting of home and office: once upon a time we traveled from the former to the latter before returning home again, with no confusion as to which was which. Now we might occupy one space for both purposes, or use our digital communications devices to keep working even when we’re away from the workplace. Near and far have similarly lost much of their antithetical qualities: the vast distances that used to make us feel separated from people on the other side of the globe now hardly matter at all as we video-conference with them in real time.
So back to the arts. As those of you who’ve followed A.R.T.’s trajectory know, we started our venture with a portfolio of modular art. From there we launched a blog and twitter stream in which we explored modularity and the related topics of mass customization, digital fabrication and co-creativity. In researching material to write about we came to discover that there’s a slew of well-designed modular products out there, but which are currently scattered among many vendors and venues. It occurred to us that what was lacking was a central hub in which to present this rich cache of design work. Thus was born Module R, which aims to fulfill precisely that purpose. And since art and design can now co-exist in a harmonious relationship rather than be segregated into separate venues, we decided to marry Module R (how fast they grow up!) with A.R.T. by opening a popup gallery exhibiting both modular art and design.
The gallery is located at 400 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, New York, and will run through January 9th. There’s a reception on December 2 at 6.30pm, to which you’re all invited (it’s the least we can do for the nice folks who read this blog). For those of you who can’t make it, below is a small sampling of some of the design pieces we have on display at the shop. Either way, we’re looking forward to your feedback, and to the future success of Module R.
References:
Module R website
Fabulous!!!