Triennale Milan: Unknown Unknowns – Culture

The desire for another planet cannot be overlooked. A pitch-black celestial body landed in the very first few meters of the exhibition, so big that it even filled the high hall of the Triennale. Whoever gets closer not only recognizes that this planet consists of nothing but black loudspeakers, but also hears its sound. A kind of carpet of sound envelops the giant ball, one would spontaneously place it somewhere between a massage parlor and computer-generated music for the photo gallery on the cell phone.

The international exhibition of the Milan Triennale wants to go far. The 23rd edition is dedicated to space. Which is why not only all sorts of satellite images, rocks and space stations buzz through the halls of “Unknown Unknowns”, but also a real astrophysicist, Ersilia Vaudo from the European Space Agency ESA, who curated the show. “Unknown Unknowns proposes a new way of looking at it,” she explains her concept. “Not through polarizations such as light/dark, full/empty, science/art, but through the possibility of exploration: from the widest universe to dark matter, from the bottom of the oceans to the Origin of our consciousness.”

Open detailed view

One can ask oneself whether such an important design show doesn’t treat itself to some visually stunning escapism. The world is on fire, literally. The drought summer and the floods in Pakistan have once again shown the devastating effects of the climate catastrophe. Couldn’t there be more important design questions than what is the perfect shape for a Martian dwelling (architect Bjarke Ingels suggests that of a fluted donut)? The notion that none other than gravity is “the first and greatest female designer” seems a bit aloof, not to say esoteric. On the one hand.

On the other hand. What else should you do if it’s always about saving the world? And while we’re on the subject of saving the world: Hasn’t humanity’s curiosity to discover the sky and beyond also often pushed forward developments on earth? Seen in this way, the theme of this year’s Triennale, in which projects by 400 artists, designers, scientists and architects from 40 countries can be seen, could provide the greatest possible focus to take a closer look at one’s own planet.

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It is interesting how historical works – whether from art or science – radiate an enviable optimism from today’s perspective. This is shown, for example, in the small painting “The Flight into Egypt” by Adam Elsheimer from 1609, which lets the first representation of the Milky Way light up in the starry night sky, as one could already see it with the naked eye at that time, but what the German painter was the first to do ever held. You almost think you can see his pride in the precise brushstrokes. Until 1925 that was it with the universe, then came Edwin Hubble and now we are at 200 billion galaxies. Since this year, the James Webb Space Telescope has been providing images from the outermost edge of the universe. Or the watercolors of the sky variations by André des Gachons. Today one hardly dares to look worriedly into a bright blue sky – keyword: hot days – or to marvel at thunderclouds – keyword: heavy rain. At des Gachons, the weather records become magical works of art reminiscent of Goethe’s cloud diaries. Or the downright heartwarming pencil drawings by Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky because they look like comics. The Russian inventor, who is considered the father of space travel, used the small sketches from 1933 to imagine how it would be possible to travel into space in the future. It’s a pen and paper invitation to look forward to.

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Marie Velardi’s “Future Perfect. 21st Century” is much less optimistic. For the Triennale, the Swiss artist provided an update of her five-meter-long timeline, in which one catastrophe follows the next from 2001 to 2099, from the “explosion of the moon” in 2037 to the “radical blackout” that she predicts for 2052 forecast. The fictional laboratory by Susanna Hertrich and Shintaro Miyazaki has a similarly dystopian effect. What you see behind the glass pane could also be the self-made workshop of a pseudoscientist: overalls with an enlightenment symbol button hang in the showcase next to the infographic on electromagnetic fields, along with all sorts of sensors, circuits and antennas.

And that’s probably what’s initially irritating about these dystopias and all-too-fantastic future scenarios in space at the Triennial: they’ve all too often been seen in the context of conspiracy myths, particularly in the past two years. The number of followers of even the crudest ideas has increased enormously since the pandemic. Some of their representatives – beyond the Aluhut faction – have become enormously professional.

Open detailed view

Open detailed view

But does that mean that the field should be left to the conspiracy believers? And on the other hand, only the Elon Musks of this world concede the optimistic belief in life in space? Hopefully not. The field is simply too beautiful for that, even if you don’t understand it and can only admire its formulas.

Speaking of beauty: at the end, ESA will show a view of Earth from afar in an installation. “This perspective,” says curator Ersilia Vaudo, “reveals the fragility of our planet and the impact of factors such as urbanization, air pollution, melting glaciers, rising temperatures and more.” Rarely has one’s own planet been so attractive.

Unknown Unknowns, Milan Triennale. Until December 11th