Description
Spring / Summer 2020 – Cover designs by Formafantasma
As we enter into the second decade of the 21st century and in a post-pandemic era, what does the role of humanism play in our society and how is it understood by artists and designers? What are its potential meanings, implications, and even misunderstandings in contemporary culture? TLmag 33 SS 2020 explores The New Age of Humanism as perceived in the field of art and design, contemporary applied arts in connection with the research, scientific and conservation worlds. How is this concept defined with all the values it reflects and put into practice by some of our leading makers and thinkers today and in the future? Among its themes, TLmag 33 will look at humans and how they connect with and relate to each other, the rise in awareness towards climate change and sustainability, the transformation of materials and the attraction for more rawness, new ways of living and consuming, the connections we have with earth and the landscape, the impact of new technologies, engineering and policy making, as well as the key role institutions, platforms and places putting these themes into. TLmag 33 SS 2020 is co-curated by Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin, from Formafantasma, the Amsterdam-based Italian design duo who have recently been appointed the Heads of the new master’s department called “Geo Design”, at the Design Academy Eindhoven, NL and curators of the major exhibition “Cambio” on timber, forestry practices and production strategies surrounding wood at Serpentine Galleries, UK. Formafantasma, whose work is known for its experimental material investigations and for exploring issues such as the relationship between tradition and local culture, critical approaches to sustainability and the significance of objects as cultural conduits, are ideal partners for this issue and we are thrilled to have their critical insight. In such fraught political times and with an urgent environmental crisis, how can designers, makers, artists and thinkers contribute to this new age of humanism and most critically, put it into practice?