adaval & Solà-Morales, at Fundación ICO in Madrid
Spanish/Mexican architects Cadaval & Solà-Morales have designed an exhibition of works by artist Susana Solano at Fundación ICO in Madrid, made almost entirely of recycled materials. The exhibition, displaying models of Solano’s public artworks, ran from October last year until January this year.
“It is a project done following ecological and sustainable principles but now applied to exhibition design. The exhibition was on Susana Solano’s work, one of the most important Spanish artists (MOMA has several pieces of her). The main objective of the project was to create a 100% recyclable design. It’s amazing the amount of materials and energy that are wasted on exhibition design; it seems that exhibition design is floating on a limbo, where architects and designers, can waste energy and resources with no limit.
“A fragile, white, translucent, almost sacramental envelope is built to receive a number of sturdy and powerful pieces. The reference is clear: the paper lamps used in fairs, made out of fragile honey comb paper, with its volume build up on air and inventiveness. From paper lamps to the recycled paper used inside wood doors (to reinforce them) there are a few hours of investigation, and the conviction to find in the paper industry a material that would fulfill our architectural aims, and be ecologically-friendly and economic.
“The installation responded to ecological and sustainable issues. Not only the design was part of an itinerant exhibition, but even more, the main material used to build up was made up of recycled paper and could be recycled again. Moreover, decision on the material implied a radical decrease in costs.”