Preview of the exhibition about kitchen/furniture design at the Imperial Furniture Collection Vienna Hofmobiliendepot, 11 February 2015

The influence of technologies, power supply and social changes on kitchen design

The design of kitchen and kitchen furniture is influenced by the development of new technologies, the infrastructure of private households like running water or power supply such as gas, electricity and social changes.

Under these aspects, the exhibition 'The Kitchen and its Furniture - Design and History' presents the cultural history of eating from the furniture design angle from 4 March until 26 July 2015 at the Imperial Furniture Collection Vienna of the Hofmobiliendepot. Curator Dr. Eva B. Ottillinger collected examples of kitchen designs such as Viennese architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky's prototype of the mass-produced, more affordable and functional 'Frankfurt Kitchen' for small rooms (1920s) or the royal kitchen of the Vienna Hofburg (picture right) from the turn of the 19th/20th century, furniture like cupboards such as the toolbox inspired technically enhanced one by EOOS (image above, from 2008) and even kitchen equipment like pots for the exploration of design and its interdependence with infrastructure, new technologies (electric devices) and the changes of lifestyles. The EOOS kitchen b2 is an example for today's wish to customize the own living place - not only once but continuously such as from a single-household into a family or friends kitchen. The concept is based on the idea of the kitchen as an open workshop which can be closed like a toolbox and adapted with new devices easily.

The exhibition steps back to former centuries (at the preview images, even an Austrian smokehouse with an open fire place of the early 15th century is on view) and offers accompanying events such as chocolate workshops for children and school classes.

fig.:

• Kitchen b2 by EOOS, designed 2008, produced by bulthaup. Both photos: (C) bulthaup.
• The large royal kitchen of the Vienna Hofburg (Die große Hofküche in der Wiener Hofburg), photo captured around 1905; (C) Bundesmobilienverwaltung, Silberkammer, Hofburg Wien.

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