Postmodernism: Style and Subversion, 1970-1990

Good exhibition at the V&A looking at design in the 1970s and 1980s.

I must admit at first I didn’t get this and, given this is my era, I expected it to grab me. It began with a lot of imaginative architecture but after I while I longer to see something which had actually been built!

In the objects section it began to come together but I wasn’t quite sure why at first it was only in the later section that it was because it was the start of design statements such as Alessi which I did notice at the time. Obviously the ground breaking early works had passed me buy it was only when something I could buy appeared that I sat up and took notice!

The best section for me was the performance one with a section on Grace Jones and an outfit, 2 ballet outfits designed by Leigh Bowery and wonderful videos of singers/performance artists of the era. At that point I got it!

I came away from the exhibition with lots of new images in my mind and a better knowledge of things which had influenced me.

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