The Life Fair
At the intersection of politics, economics, ethics, design and technology, the human body has become a battlefield of varied and often conflicting forces. With universal themes such as Birth, Work, Sex, Security and Health, the exhibition The Life Fair: New Body Products explores how the quest for an optimal body has developed into a highly competitive market.
The Life Fair, including interview with curator Agata Jaworska, film by Marit Geluk
Never before has technology had a greater influence on the body and never before has the relation between the human body and its surroundings been subjected to so much control. Our physical selves can increasingly be monitored and, when necessary, improved. Why not freeze your eggs until you've had a successful career and then have children? Or take a chemical test to determine whether you're really in love? We are constantly faced with the choice: buy or boycott, opt-in or opt-out, comply or resist.
At the intersection of politics, economics, ethics, design and technology, the human body has become a battlefield of varied and often conflicting forces.
As a visitor of The Life Fair, you will explore commercial products, services and scenarios that will help you to realise your ideal self. You will learn about tools and strategies employed by governments in the formation of a safe, healthy and well-disciplined society. You will encounter NGOs, artists and designers, who introduce their own agenda into the diverse range of viewpoints. The Life Fair asks you to navigate between these commercial, social, ethical and ideological interests.
The Life Fair. Photo Johannes Schwartz
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- Curators: Agata Jaworska, Giovanni Innella
- Spatial design: Claus Wiersma
- Graphic design: Kévin Bray, Thomas Buxó
- Project management: Ina Hollmann
- With thanks to: Eliza Mante, Hongjie Yang, Rana Ghavami