nature—cooper Hewitt design triennial

This exhibition explores how designers grow their relationship with nature beyond inspiration and into collaboration, imagining new futures and contending with the changing conditions of our planet.

Studio Joseph worked with Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum to bring forth this immense show of extraordinary and diverse pieces that present an optimistic view of the meaningful interactions design can forge with the natural environment. 

The design activated the space through a flexible system that flows from and fuses to the framework of the building, creating a conceptual oozing of nature from the walls of the museum. The organic structure of the platforms clusters objects within one of the show’s seven sub-categories—Facilitating, Augmenting, Nurturing, Salvaging, Remediating, Understanding, and Simulating—while also creating a seamless “amoeba” that winds its way through space.

On the historic ground floor of the museum, platforms that display objects and casework peel up the walls, providing surfaces for vertical display while also respecting the historic wood paneling and wallpaper. Upstairs in the modern galleries, the installation forms islands of display that cluster content sections and shape an undulating visitor path.