Dan Adlešič
Furniture Pets
**** ALERT **** FURNITURE PETS **** ALERT ****
SMART FURNITURE DOES THING RIGHT IT DOES BY ITSELF NOT YOU
SO SMART IS ALMOST ALIVE O.K. 100% LIVE ACTION, EXTREME
NOW ALSO WITH INTEGRATED Advanced Self-Cleaning Technology™
HALAL, GOOD FOR HUMANS
FROM TAIL TO A TALE, WOW
BUILT WITH CARE, TOP QUALLITY MODEL
FIRST TIME IN SLOVENIA ALSO NOW THE BEST
COME BYE
Dan Adlešič, Furniture Pets, 2018. Courtesy of the artist.
Dan Adlešič, Furniture Pets, 2018. Courtesy of the artist.
Dan Adlešič, Furniture Pets, 2018. Courtesy of the artist.
Today the success of a product is not measured by its quality but by how efficiently it sells. Seeing how many bizarre objects are produced is as disappointing as it is fascinating. Often, these objects are manufactured as updated versions of already existing products, occasionally even as an implemented hybrid combination of multiple objects. With their absurd, adorable, cute, weird features they appear attractive, yet most of the time, they turn out to be completely useless. From the perspective of consumption, however, being aware of this evolution’s absurdity does not necessarily indicate being immune to a disease that all of us, in different ways, share: the fascination with weird, useless objects.
Electronic products and services could enrich and expand our experiences of everyday life rather than minimize it; they could become a medium for experiencing complex aesthetic situations. The idea of the Furniture Pets (2018) brand is to spark a debate about technology and everyday life. By developing provocative artefacts, the brand aims to engage people through humour, surprise and wonder. Although they might appear as pointless objects with bizarre functions, their value goes beyond the applied function and offers an opportunity to stimulate our imagination.
Text by Domenico Quaranta and Janez Fakin Janša (edited and adapted for ETC.).
The project was produced by Aksioma | Institute for Contemporary Art in the framework of the U30+ production programme for supporting young artists (2017, Ljubljana).
Dan Adlešič, Furniture Pets, 2018. Courtesy of the artist.
Dan Adlešič (1990) graduated from the Ljubljana Academy of Fine Arts and Design with a degree in Unique Design (2013) and received his MFA in Contextual Design from Design Academy Eindhoven (2015) with the project Electricity is just like ... WOAH!. The project was subsequently presented by the Dutch conceptual design studio Makkink & Bey at the BI-City Biennale in Shenzhen, China, and at the Ram Gallery in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. In 2016, the same project was presented as an exhibition in major galleries across Europe, such as Rossana Orlandi in Milan, De Witte Dame Eindhoven, Helsinki Design Museum, as well as a performance at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris. In 2018, Adlešič developed two solo projects, which were exhibited at Osmoza Gallery (Sintrop) and Aksioma Project Space (Furniture pets). A year later, he developed the Sintrop project into a new production entitled Entrop (2019). In addition to artistic projects, he also works in the field of spatial and furniture design.
Etc. is a annual magazine, dedicated to showcasing current artistic production from the Baltic to the Balkans.
Based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, each issue is dedicated to a relevant topic in art and life. Founded to promote emerging artists, its goal is to initiate a dialogue, inspire collaborations, and challenge set views.