In the early 20th century, the popularization of modernist ideals along with innovations in industrial design and manufacturing led many to believe that thoughtful, enduring design would finally be commonplace and accessible to all. A century later, that promise has largely failed to come to fruition as enduring design is still rarified and inaccessible to many while objects designed for mass production are often poorly made and designed with a limited lifespan. Miami-based artist Leyden Rodriguez-Casanova will explore ideas of obsolescence and the ubiquity of banal design in today’s commodity culture through a site-specific installation at the Miami Center for Architecture & Design entitled Exhuming Obsolescence.

This project consists of a series of wall structures built to common domestic specifications interlinked throughout the columns located in the interior lobby of the Old Post Office and Courthouse, a historic building that now serves as the home for the Miami Center for Architecture & Design. With these structures, there will be an arrangement of found and salvaged items, primarily pieces and components of domestic furniture and architecture. All will be arranged and designed with the architecture of the Miami Center for Architecture & Design’s home in mind, building a composition in response to the center’s space and the interaction of the artist’s structure within the space.

The materials used in his work are standardized and most often found, salvaged or purchased at a discount. This makes the decisions on color, style, shape and size of his work largely dictated by external hierarchies outside the control of the artist. The artist sees himself as a passive participant using these standardized materials and changing their original intent. However, most of the form decisions are left alone. What unfolds is a subtle civil disobedience that repurposes these objects into new narratives while allowing the sourced objects to retain their original functions.

Curated by Ricardo Mor of the Miami Center for Architecture & Design, the exhibition is part of a recent effort by the center to explore the connections between art, architecture, design and the broader topics that stem from these disciplines through the center’s exhibitions.

Major support for this exhibition is generously provided by TWENTY TWO GROUP.

The exhibition will run through November 19th, 2015 to January 15, 2015.