The world is full. Now what? This overarching question sets the conditions for Daniel Arsham’s engagement with the built environment. He first came to prominence as one of the founding partners (alongside Alex Mustonen) of Snarkitecture, an experimental practice that focuses on design within existing spaces. In more recent years, he has established himself as an independent polymath, realizing a huge diversity of films, sculpture, performance, and interiors.
One of his primary leitmotifs is a look of ruination, in which objects of potential nostalgic attachment—from teddy bears to vintage desktop computers—are cast in such a way that cracks and voids run through them. Several references are at work here, from the 1970s experimental architects SITE to science fiction films like Blade Runner. More important is the portrayal that these objects give of the present, a time when materiality itself is coming to seem an uncertain proposition.