Taste Is the Lack of Appetite - výstava v berlínském Aedes

In the heart of dynamic Berlin art and cultural environment, an architectural exhibition titled "TASTE IS THE LACK OF APPETITE" took place, created by the company Graft. This company was founded in Los Angeles in 1998 by Lars Kruckeberg, Wolfram Putz, and Thomas Willemeit. It currently operates in Berlin and Beijing as well. It is known for its innovative and modern projects in the field of architecture and design. The exhibition was held on the occasion of the company's 25th anniversary in the prestigious Aedes Architekturforum in Berlin. This architectural institution has become an epicenter for presenting revolutionary ideas and creative concepts from renowned architects around the world.
The title of the exhibition expresses the philosophy of how Graft perceives the world. While many prefer a sense of certainty and the desire to create a stable image for themselves or their architectural firm, Graft takes the opposite approach. Their belief is that the constant desire to explore and address the unknown should be a lasting philosophy and attitude towards architecture that they want to provide.
The exhibition offered insight into contemporary architectural trends. The theme emphasized the courage of expression and originality in architecture, where architects go beyond usual boundaries and seek new forms of expression. It showcased a selection of realized and ongoing projects of residential, mixed-use, and cultural buildings by Draft, along with one significant unrealized proposal for which the company won first place in an international competition for the Jewish Museum in Moscow. The mentioned projects include A LASKA, Ostkreuz, Berlin, Germany - double office buildings; Conversion and extension of the oldest youth hostel, Munich, Germany; BRICKS, Berlin-Schöneberg, Germany - revitalization of a historic post office site; Charlie Living, a residential neighborhood at Checkpoint Charlie, Berlin, Germany; WAVE, Berlin, Germany - two residential buildings on the Spree River. Each of these projects reflects their design strategies, which are WEAVING, TRACING, SECTIONING, VOXELING, CARVING, and LOFTING. These strategies were concretely manifested at the exhibition through large-scale models. Simultaneously, the exhibition addressed the theme of architectural activism in accordance with their diverse work and presented an original prototype of a community Solar Kiosk.
The exhibit was divided into two exhibition rooms. Upon entering the Architekturforum, we found ourselves directly in the first exhibition room, which was dedicated to the aforementioned Solar Kiosk project, an innovative project designed for remote areas of Africa. It symbolizes a social postcolonial model and provides sustainable energy supply, connectivity, and communication using clean solar energy.
In the second exhibition room, large-format wooden models of the presented buildings were displayed. These models were accompanied by annotations about the specific project and a series of photographs on the walls. There were also samples of floor plans, sections, or views. In addition to the exhibited projects, free-standing mirror blocks on the floor and a sign on the wall that could be read from a certain point in the room were also effective elements of the exhibition. The material solution of the models added a pleasant atmosphere to the entire exhibition.
The exhibition highlighted experimentation with design and aesthetics in architecture. As visitors, we witnessed diverse approaches to the development and transformation of forms, and it was undoubtedly an experience for all those interested in innovations and experiments in architecture.