Museum of Futures

Museum of Futures Proposal for a platform and center of Speculative thinking, Arts and Design in India

Yatharth Semester 6 Exhibition Design Project Guide Taniskha Kachru

The Brief Museum of Futures

Design a museum in Sanskar Kendra, in the city of Ahmedabad,India.

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The Place Museum of Futures

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad which recently got the tag of “world heritage city” celebrating its rich history is the home to the vision of Narendra Modi’s India, Mahatma Gandhi, The Early Industrialist and the biggest Buisnesses in India

Sanskar Kendra Along with its Rich Cultural heritage Its also known for its Modernist art and Architecture. Few of the most Influential Institutions i India includeing the IIM,NID, CEPT etc are located in and around the city.

Howard Spoddek refers to it as the “Shock City of 20th Century”

Sanskar Kendra is one of the three museums of Unlimited growth built by Le Corbusier. The building which follows Corbusier’s modular grid was intially suppossed to serve as an ever expanding cultural centre for the city of Ahmedabad

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Over the years the building has detoriated, lost its cultural importance in the city. The plans of expansions were never realised.

Currently it hosts the rarely visited City museum of Ahmedabad and Kite Museum.

The building has reduced to a distant relic to India’s Moderninst dreams

What are Futures Museum of Futures

Being involved with science and technology and working with many technology companies, we regularly encounter thinking about futures, especially about “The Future.�

Usually it is concerned with predicting or forecasting the future, sometimes it is about new trends and identifying weak signals that can be extrapolated into the near future, but it is always about trying to pin the future down. This is something we are absolutely not interested in;

when it comes to technology, future predictions have been proven wrong again and again. In our view, it is a pointless activity. What we are interested in, though, is the idea of possible futures and using them as tools to betterunderstand the present and to discuss the kind of future people want, and, of course, ones people do not want. They usually take the form of scenarios, often starting with a whatif question, and are intended to open up spaces of debate and discussion;

Futures are possiblities and explorations rather than accurate predictions

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What are Futures Museum of Futures

What?

Futures are tools for Imagination, it allows us to look at the present critically by imagining what could be or what should not be. Its a medium rather than a destination.

“Imagining future makes reality more malleable”

Why? As we are dealing with increasing complex socio-political-climatic issues both inside and outside the country, it’s becoming essential to look beyond the traditional problem solving models and start approaching “wicked problems” with imaginatative alternates.

How? According to Dune and Raby traditionally “Future are tools for organizing and justifying present for a powerful minority” and theres an urgent need to start speculation at all levels of society to make tomorrows more inclusive and desirable for everyone.

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Why Museum of Futures

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Why Museum of Futures

India is looking for its new identity again. As a global superpower and the goto industrial country among other things, which sometimes don’t reflect the lived realities of the people and the environment. We are split between our Global dreams and Local realities.

Despite the difference, its crucial for us to look back at where we failed and critically imagine our futures. Our imagined futures have failed us earlier and would keep failing too, thus its more important to imagine and be prepared for multiple futures and use them to inform our current decision making.

The museum is located in Ahmedabad “The shock city of 21st century”. Ahmedabad which recently got the tag of a “world heritage city” celebrating rich history is the home to the vision on Narendra Modi’s India, Mahatma Gandhi, The Early Industrialist and a Rich Modernist heritage along with the few of the most Influential Institutions in building the new India.

Situated in Sanskar Kendra, one of the failed visions of the city; the museum would become the center for exploring the new Indian identity and visions by bringing speculative narratives and imaginations of different artists , thinkers and futurist to the public and let them reflect on our current decisions.

The museum aims to place ahmedabad as the city which doesn’t just celebrate its rich heritage and history but also as the city which builds new dreams for the country and itself.

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What Museum of Futures

VISION

To foster social dreaming in the decision makers and communities.

Encouraging them to make informed choices,decisions and opinions about present and shape their own futures

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How Museum of Futures

MISSION Bring together parallel “what ifs” and “what could be” narratives in a space.

Provide a platform for speculative fiction,design and arts to engage and collaborate with the audience in dreaming of and for different futures.

The museum doesn’t impose a future but acts as an instrument for imagination.

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Target Audience

Intellects Creatives Policy Makers Planners

Community

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Leaders

Students

Museum of Futures

Components Museum of Futures

Design Museum Of Speculative Arts Social Space for Discussions about futures Center for crtitical Thinking

The museum would cater primarily to an audience of intellects,creatives and policy makers to stir speculative thinking in them, the museum would connect to the community and the its surroundings through the bridge of students and local leaders by inspiring,co-creating and co-curating with them.

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Model of Museum Museum of Futures India Ahmedabad Museum Exhibit Area

References

Activities

Work

Outreach

Alternatives

Community Activity

Publications

Social Spaces Public Gallery Cafe

Library/Workshop/Research

Events

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Components Museum of Futures

Exhibit Process

Activity Process

Question What new environments we will live in?

Critique Fantasy

Project Implementation Evaluate

Context/References

Reflection/Criticism The museum would have activities encourage participants to come up with their own future scenarios using Future Workshop model developed by Robert Jungk

How sustainable our current practices are?

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Categorization Museum of Futures

Implementation

Authority

Technological

Inventions

Power Strucuture Identity

Models

Individuals

Trade

Social

Economic

Transaction

Kinds of Future

Communities Rituals

Values

Lifestyles

Resources Enivronmental

Structures

Organisms Climate

Health

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Narrative Directions Museum of Futures

Entry

Activities

Macro

Micro

Optimistic

Critical

Probable

Possible

Fantastical

Familiar

Scenario

Problems

Activities

The general direction museum tries to maintain is to start from a very far fetched , fantastical scenario to a close to reality, almost eerily familar projects

Activities

Analysis

Solution

Activities

The narrative takes the viewers through the journey of critical thinking, first making them imagine a scenario, then finding problems in them, then trying to find solution of the problems and finally analysing the whole situation. The activities at the transitions allow visitors to practice it for themselves

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Content Museum of Futures

The museum does not hold a fixed collection because the future is not set in stone. Works displayed in the museum keeps changing and the content is being co-created with the visitors.

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Content* Museum of Futures

Category

Project

Question

Intro

Nehru's Modern India

what kinds of dreams Show what Nehru's Models, Interactive we have been dream- vision realised would maps ing of have looked in 2030

Imagined

Life in a Socialist India

Can we think parallel Shows what kind of of what our leaders personal life people envisioned would have lived in an alternate india with socialism

George Orwell / Man in High Castle

Scenario

Indian Space Programs

Captain Vyom and Indian Scifi

Problem

How far have we reached

How far can we go

Content

Media

Artifacts, posters, and stories

Adapted

Project Energy Pods Silent Rickshaw

Object showing what Props, Projections, kind of imagination small artifacts communities have about Indian space program

Kenya Space Project / Superflux

What India in its Projection film, fully realized form graphic artifacts would look in a space age

Captain Vyom

Money of Future

Future in Pol

How would the current hold up in future

How pols of Ahmedabad would transform through some circumstances in future

Scale models, documents

NID

Sunday Market

How would the current be better in future

Diorama,Graphic artifacts

NID

Delhi Pollution

What ignoring current issues would lead to

How the sunday market at riverfront would look in a connected city An uninhabitable polluted future of delhi

Superflux

Being Messy Nicely

What forms current issues would take

Smoke filled room, vehicle prop, inhalable airs and machines Interactive Projections and documents

Waterless Delhi 1 and 2

How we live would change

Wade

What issues of today look like tomorrow

Land of No Women

How current problems manifest

Multiple proposals for what urban planning of mumbai would look in 2030 Proposal for alternate ways to gather water from environment A film about a drowned kolkata due to climate change A city where the gender gaps have pushed women outside the central city

Category Solution

Analysis

CRIT

Dramatic space, Dune and Raby graphic objects, Props Experiential Space, Virtual Reality

Ghost Animation

Sculptural Installation, graphic backdrop

NID

Question Content What new infrastruc- proposal to utilize tures we need energy of tides in coastal regions What small initiatives proposal for a space would affect the to avoid noise pollufuture tion in crowded cities How people would adapt to the new

Exploration of what new money would look in local indian context, things like cryptocurrency Indian Social Credit 1 How changes would Cautionary tale of impact society loss of privacy and mass surveillance Indian Social Credit 2 How solutions would Hopeful tale showbe exploited ing how a universal database would improve lives The data hawker Who would hold the Project around the power ownership of private data and its exploitation Illegal Non Vegetar- Who would face the Cautionary tale of ianism consequences how marginalisation in politics could affect life Dynamic General vs What unexpected A tale of what people Mann things might emerge would do to circumvent systems and measures taken by government and how these crimes would be dealt with

Media Scale prop

Adapted Busride Design Labs

Interactive and Experiential prop, soundstage using directed speakers Graphic installation

Unbox

Camera installation with projection

Black Mirror

AD posters, videos on TV showing the promises

Imagined

A stall, VR experience, graphic objects

NID

Metahaven

News reports, graphic NID objects, light space Performance space with a court

Superflux

*All works mentioned are suggestions for an initial content but not the actual content.

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Content Museum of Futures Location

Activity

Process

Output

Ground Floor

Future Cocreation Installation People can write what they want from future on the interactive seatings and place them back in central installation. The installation becomes a dynamic sculptural representation of future people want

Dynamic Sculpture of desired futures in the central pool

Intro Panels 1

Parallel futures

When people walk on the ramp they see the different versions of future on the other side of wall on each panel, from utopian to dystopian, modern renders to traditional vis

Visuals

Scenario Introwall

Interactive city

Interactive installation view of a city which can be controlled through peoples smartphones to create new maps on the installation view

Changing visuals

Scenario activity

Interactive Planning

A series of installations where people playfully create urban planning and try to predict something through interactive tools.

A scenario on their device

Problems introwall

Interactive problem map

A wall of visuals, which curates pictures of what people Changing visuals share as problems on social media through some hashtags

Problems activity

Co-op game

A gamification where people try to find and list problems in others scenarios maybe through some sort experiential game or something like tetris.

Solutions Introwall

Solution table

User curated wall and a display of ingenious ways of prob- User curated exhibition lem solving as items,stories or pictures left behind

Solutions Activity

Workshop

Equipping participants with the tools to playfully come with physical or conceptual solutions to the problems.

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A score and a list of problems

A tangible takeaway from the museum as a solution

Activity Museum of Futures

Exhibit (a) Activity Output (b)

a

b

a.2

Activities create content for the museum, The outputs of activity acts as an sketch and database of desrired futures to overtime curate museums content by the visitors themselves.

Its like asking everyone to make doodle of future when they come to museum, and then those doodles become paintings to be hung in the museum.

The museum is self sustainable

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Spatial Planning

Intro 3

Intro 1

Museum of Futures

Intro 2

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NOT TO SCALE

Spatial Planning Museum of Futures All spaces are social spaces All works are open to critique/exploration/modification All works are collaborative Works are suggestions, not answers The audience is the curator

Ground Floor

First Floor

Second Floor

The ground floor has a cafeteria,social space for performances and exhibits and a public gallery to encourage more social interaction in the space

The first floor is the gallery space divided in 5 sections with projects and activities

The second floor serves as a space for research, reading and meeting spaces

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NOT TO SCALE

Design Directions Museum of Futures

Cocreation Installations Everyone should come together to create a tangible, dynamic future together

Parallel Spaces Exhibits with multiple alternatives and point views should be accessible in a way that viewers can explore several of them together

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Simulation Spaces Some exhibits might use a simulation model of future to have a more experiential impact on the viewers

Design Directions Museum of Futures

Reading Spaces All exhibits would be accompanied by media and readings letting visitors to delve deeper into the subject and gain a clearer understanding

Project Explorer A tool which allows visitors to dig deeper into projects and understand the context through graphs and visuals , it would also allow modify connections and relations to create alternates of the exhibits

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Conversation with museum The tool haves conversations with you when you visit an exhibit, visualising what visitors expect from the futures

Outreach Activities Museum of Futures

The museums outreach would organise activities in communities with the locals ( kids , students, housewives etc ) and the outcome of the activities would become a part of the public gallery in the museum, building a connection of the community to the mostly niche museum. Events like school workshops, plays , screenings etc would also involve the larger community to interact. The museum would also invite the experts to collaborate with the community through joint activities.

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Look and Feel Museum of Futures A cross between the white spaces of museums and traditional indian crafts to suspend beilief but parallely establishing the local context

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Section Itinerary of the Doc Museum of Futures

Design Visitors Enter the museum

Main gallery Introduction Go through an exhibit, they interact with the references, imagine alternatives Activities, Imagine your own future The future becomes part of public collection Some of the work get adapted by museum into exhibits Cafe/Installation Exit

Outreach Visitors Enter the museum

Public Gallery Activity/Social Gatherings Cafe/Installation Exit

Regular Visitors Enter the museum

Library/Research Cafe/Installation Enter the museum

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Story board Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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Renders Museum of Futures

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