mariscal was a real good fun exhibition, a feast of colour for the eyes with lots of texture and experiences - absolutely perfect for children (and not too self conscious adults) to play with and get involved. highlights were the dark room plastered with graffiti, the hoards of hanging cartoon characters and cute little videos shown on screens embedded in theatre-like sets. there was so much to see and my eyes could not stay still - not a bad thing considering the type of exhibition it was, a proper celebration of the vividness and energy of mariscal's work.
super contemporary was pretty hard core and hard work - so much info and so much to take in. on the one hand i hate this - you lose concentration quick; but on the other it allows you to dip in and out of the content, taking in what you want, what interests you, what you fancy.
the fact that it was all london based really interested me (boy, they're pushing to further cement london's reputation as design capital), although i could spot missing people / publications / designs. they should have had an audience participation bit where you could contribute your own opinions - very interesting from london's point of view to know what other nations think / associate / know of the london design scene.
as icon magazine's justin mcguirk commented in the editor's bit in july's issue, someone should do an alternative show - how interesting would that be?
the timeline design of the exhibition was spot on, the layering by practice all headed by the history of the time worked fantastically (although i would've painted the wood a nice white just to let it disappear into the wall a bit). it was strange working around the room and shifting from 'history' to recognising your own memories of things happening - particularly for me the channel four re-branding for some reason...
here's are a few snaps of the exhibition's design - again, i have to say that i loved the look and the slotting in and layering of images and texts, worked beautifully. and everyone appreciates colour coding, right? 
so, i loved the timeline but was not that impressed with the commissioned stuff in the middle of the room. although, saying that, i loved the idea of the maps of london with designers' favourite places... picked up some handy info.
one installation which stood out for me was neville brody's freedom space. walking into that cubicle was a strange experience.
i like how abstract an image the repetition of the cameras make.
a good friend of mine commented that they should just have published a book of the info and commissioned work...and i totally see that.
