Exhibition: Utility in Design

Everyday objects which not only successfully combine utility and aesthetics, but are also commercially viable are currently on display in the Circulo de Bellas Artes in Madrid, Spain.

The exhibition stems from the idea that utility is the raison d'etre of design and lists 5 sides to utility which, roughly translated, are the following:

• Appropriate for an end
• In accordance with the body
• Easy for everyone
• According to need
• To last and be recycled

The exhibition covers a wide variety of objects and gives an overview of the history of the design and development of each item, as well as pointing out the key characteristics that make each one more useful than the average of its kind.

The Binaria stool by Oken, (see picture above), is one example of a product designed to combine comfort with practicality while encouraging good posture.

Among the other items exhibited you can find: Camper shoes, park benches, the Bilbao underground, comfortable scissors and bins that are emptied by underground pipes, avoiding the need for garbage disposal trucks in cities.

According to the online description of the exhibition:

"...this diversity exemplifies the transversal character of the quest for practical improvements in the design and development of new products."

On a final note, although I appreciate that standing up to mop the floor is a million times better than having to scrub it on your hands and knees, I have to say that the Rodex ad (left) with a woman mopping the kitchen floor in high heels does amuse me! Not the most practical choice of footwear perhaps.
The slogan reads:

"Smile with me if you've already got your Rodex" :)

Links:
The exhibition catalogue (PDF) from the Circulo de Bellas Artes website
A write-up of the exhibition in the newspaper El Público (in Spanish)