Exhibition Design

Description: This book presents the world's most spectacular designs for commercial and cultural installations,
spanning from smaller trade stands, large museum-like exhibition areas and temporary presentations in cultural centers, to design showrooms and spaces for product promotion. Projects such as trade fairs, art exhibitions, event locations or showrooms might be different in purpose but they all have one thing in common: they share a temporary character, they are bound to limitation of budget and space, and they are an ideal source of architectural innovation, since only a real eye-catcher can satisfy the media. Typical of these projects is the all-round mediatic presence often dedicated to them both during their conception and realization, which in turn increases the promotional effect on these types of projects. Generally, exhibition design is characterized by it high demand on functionality, on safety and on the more practical aspects such as quick and easy assembly and disassembly for a small work force. This, nevertheless, does not rule out the more aesthetic aspects: there is still plenty of room in exhibition design to play with shape, material, fitting and coloration. Located somewhere between theory and praxis, these designs spark off the creativity of the masterminds behind them -a true experimental playground for architects to put their most daring ideas to the test. And what better way to boost the reputation not only of their planners, but also of their clients, trade fairs, commercial brands and cultural products, not to mention the cities in which they are set up - they form and reinforce identities. Quite often, the short lifespan of these projects promotes the creation of legends. Some are even able to transcend their temporary character and end up becoming an object of exhibition itself, such as the Finnish Pavilion by Alvar Aalto at the Venice Biennale, or the German Pavilion in Barcelona built by Mies van der Rohe for the International Exposition in 1929.