Tales From A Globalizing World

GENEVA EXHIBITION 2003

The exhibition TALES FROM A GLOBALIZING WORLD was first staged in the Maison communale de Plainpalais in Geneva from 13 November to 12 December 2003 (52 rue de Carouge, 1205 Geneva).

The exhibition coincided with the first phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), held from 10 to 12 December 2003 in Geneva.

[» images of the first venue at the Plainpalais]

As a whole

Each of the ten assignments – whether a reportage, portrait or essay – constitutes a work in itself in terms of both form and content. At the same time, the individual works are embedded in an overlying concept within which they complement and comment on each other.
The photos from the ten stories are framed and displayed on 121 double stands. The visitor is free to either follow the narrative thread of the exhibition and view the stories linearly or walk around at will, associating the stories and photos with each other. Standing in front of each photo, the visitor enjoys an overview of the ensemble at all times, producing a dialogue between the individual picture and the exhibition as a whole.
This visualizes both the interdependencies of the networked world with its ideology of maintaining an overview, as well as the need to address its individual phenomena, represented by each picture.

241 photos

The presentation enables the observer to interpret each of the 241 photos both individually and in context, thus creating a tension between the photos and the stark grid system in which they are arranged. While this rigid layout represents the process of global standardization, the photos they contain bear witness to the variety of forms this process can take.

Architecture

The design the exhibition illustrates the concept of globalization in two ways. The geometric alignment of the double stands and the resulting grids recall the standardization and certification that characterize the globalization process. At the same time, by interacting with the visitors walking around the inner areas between the stands, the overall set-up also suggests the space of flows created by the global standardization process.

The Maison communale de Plainpalais, located in the centre of Geneva, is a well known location for theatre and and other events. The building, a mixture of Art Nouveau and Neo-Baroque elements, dates from 1908-1909 and was designed by the architect Joseph Marschall.