Luksus 09

What is luxury today? Design Forum Finland’s summer exhibition studies modern varieties and phenomena of luxury. “Luxury” has traditionally referred to opulence, abundance and rare expensive products and designer brands. Today’s luxury products emphasize above all good design and their focus is shifting from the objects as such to their different, and even surprising, contexts. The concept of luxury has become enmeshed in our everyday lives, while at the same time it is continuously changing. Luxury is being associated more and more with personal choices and traditional, time-consuming skills of the hand and natural, ecological materials but also with new technological applications. Information on the designer and maker, and the working process, makes products unique and desirable. LUKSUS 09, Design Forum’s summer exhibition, suggests various perspectives on luxury, through fascinating pairs of oppositions such as Minna Parikka’s satin-ribbon shoes in which the element of luxury is the wearer’s preparation for a special occasion or Aki Choklat’s new and laid-back interpretation of traditional felt footwear. Luxury is also represented by Jutta Johansson’s unique relief piece, in which she has developed the wallpaper designs of Élitis of France, imported by Lauritzon. Journalist Kaj Kalin’s wedding-night table setting installation is a perceptive statement on contemporary ideas regarding luxury. LUKSUS 09 until August 30, 2009