What I'm Thinking About Interior Design Now Vol.20

I went to the Michael Borremans & Mark Manders | Double Science exhibition, which was held at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa until February 2021.

It's within walking distance from my house, so I've been meaning to go there someday, but I've missed out on several exhibitions, so this time I bought tickets online in advance and went.

I'm not particularly knowledgeable about art, so I had no prior knowledge at all.
The only knowledge I had was from posts by people I follow on Instagram saying it was good and that I should go.
Some people had come to Kanazawa from Tokyo just to see this exhibition, and they came to view it with great anticipation.

The result was a bit cliche but good lol.
I read reviews on various websites and am impressed by how well people translate their thoughts into words.
I'm not good at writing, lol. If you're interested, try searching online.

The exhibition was good, but I also heard something in the audio guide that said, "Borremans was more interested in how the images he painted were interpreted and used by the viewer than in what he painted himself, and in the end, even if you look at the same painting, you will not see it as you know it. It will not look the same, and your life experiences up to now will make you see it that way." I'm sure there are people who will agree with that, but for me it felt like he had put into words something I had been thinking about up until then in a very good way.

When I think about this in my job selling interior and furniture, most of the people who come to the store have owned multiple homes and purchased furniture multiple times, and unless they are furniture lovers, they don't have the knowledge to buy furniture.

For example, when you see a dining chair with armrests, most people might think that they can rest their elbows on it and relax.
Of course, that's true, and I think chairs with arms are good for relaxing in the dining room.
On the other hand, the armrests mean that the chair cannot be stored under the table, which takes up space.
When I try to sit down in a chair, I have to pull the chair all the way back because of the elbows.
If you put your elbows halfway under the table, they will get bruised.

This is also something that can be considered with chairs with arms.

However, since the room is spacious, it doesn't bother me that my elbows can't fit under the table. I don't mind the scratches on my elbows. I'm sure there are people who feel the same way, so this may not be a disadvantage.
However, wouldn't it be completely different if you knew about this when you bought it or not?
It's also important to know whether the person selling it communicates this.
We may recommend something, but ultimately it is up to the customer to choose.
It also tells you about directions that you have not seen before.

Regardless of the genre, all sales work involves conveying the seller's knowledge and experience, understanding the customer's lifestyle and preferences, and making suggestions accordingly.
I think the role of an interior design shop is to assist customers with their ideas by helping them with spatial layout, furniture selection, and suggesting miscellaneous items.
I have come to realise that I need more knowledge and experience.

From March 20, 2021, Mark Manders' first solo exhibition at a Japanese art museum will be held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.
I think there will probably be some of the same works, so I'm interested to see how the exhibition space changes and how my impressions will change, so I'm thinking of going to see them. I want to visit art museums all over the world.

(text: Doi)

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