About the Event
The exhibition “TAPAS. Spanish Design for Food”, organized by the Metropolitan Museum of Manila and AC/E - Acción Cultural Española (Spanish Cultural Action), in collaboration with the Embassy of Spain in the Philippines and the Instituto Cervantes de Manila, feature more than 200 objects and instruments, videos, photographs, and installations to explore the interaction between design and gastronomy, two creative disciplines enjoying a boom in Spain and currently achieving international acclaim. The exhibition opens to the public on April 1, 2016 at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila and will be on view until June 16, 2016.
Curated by designer/architect Juli Capella, TAPAS showcases imagination and talent targeting the taste buds, where design and haute cuisine go hand in hand. Spanish chefs, designers, architects, wineries and restaurants reflect the last 25 years of Spain’s avant-garde experimental blending of design and food. Legendary culinary icons from Spain are also featured, including the paella pan, traditional wineskins and flasks, the bota, botijo and porrón.
“This exhibition is a tribute to the origins of the word Tapa,” said the curator, Juli Capella, “which also means lid in Spanish. Derived from the ancient custom to cover (tapar) a glass of wine with a slice of bread or chilled meat to keep out dust and insects. During the turn of this century, Spain has led a bold, avant-garde experiment: combining high cuisine with high design,” adds Capella. “Culinary creations are matched to their containers, thus going beyond raw ingredients and cooking. This Spanish revolution fosters the partnership between chef and designer.”
The Tapas’ tradition best exemplifies Spain’s true social nature. When a group of friends gets together at a table to taste portions of widely varying flavors, it’s more than just a way to enjoy food - it’s also a great way to share an experience. This is Spain’s message to today’s world: to bring people together for real social interactions by enjoying Tapas.
The curator further emphasizes the role that design plays in this exhibition, and in Spain’s culinary trends: “In a world without design, we would be sitting naked on the ground, there would be no tables and no chairs, no cameras or wristwatches. Design is synonymous with progress. As our different cultures engage in more permanent contact and we are all influenced by each other, the distinctive features of geographical design by countries or regions are melting away in our inter-connected world. Unlike languages (Spanish vs. English, for example), design is like music: a universal idiom.”
The exhibition features products designed by Spaniards, even if produced in another country, along with items made in Spain by foreign designers. TAPAS offers a contemporary and cutting-edge perspective via a number of designs produced exclusively for leading restaurants such as elBulli, El Celler de Can Roca (named the best restaurant in the world in 2013) and Mugaritz.
Spanish chef Ferran Adrià, who asserts,“cooking is to design dishes”, began a minor revolution by recruiting industrial designers for his kitchens to present his creations in an exclusive manner.
Designers, architects, wineries, restaurants and chefs have contributed with their works for a show which not only features more than two hundred objects, but also a large collection of wine bottles which stand out for their bold and appealing labels. The exhibition includes an audiovisual presentation featuring a selection of interior design in Spanish restaurants. It also features wineries from across Spain, which stands out for the quality of their architecture, including works by Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid and Rafael Moneo.
More about TAPAS. Spanish Design for Food
The show features three distinct elements: the kitchen (preparation and utensils), the table (objects used to sample food), and the meal (food design).
1. The kitchen: preparation and utensils
This is the working area, a laboratory that blends functionality and aesthetics. This is a space essentially dedicated to work, where functionality previously reigned supreme, although new materials and the fact that the kitchen has gradually taken on an increasingly important role within the home, have led to a change in habits and the aesthetics of the furniture and objects to be found here.
2. The table: objects used to sample food
This is where food and drink are taken in, a shared space combining furniture and architecture with functionality and aesthetics. The section reveals the whole host of objects designed for the presentation and sampling of food.
3. The meal: food design.
Ingredients, techniques and diet, combining tradition and modernity. This section, divided into several settings, presents food produce which stands out from a formal perspective. It also shows the evolution of traditional Spanish products “devised” by mankind in their form or concept (anchovy-stuffed olives, churros and paella, whose origins are lost in the mists of time) alongside more elaborated and avant-garde techniques by innovative chefs.
The exhibition features works by the following designers, architects and artists:
Antoni Miralda ׀ Martí Guixé, Adrià Guiu and Iñaki Remiro (GR Industrial Design) ׀ Brosmind Studio ׀ Amalgama Studio ׀ Ana Hernando ׀ André Ricard ׀ Andreu Carulla ׀ Antoni Arola ׀ Apparatu ׀ Ramón Úbeda ׀ Attua Aparicio ׀ Bankook Design Chambre (Ana Roquero) ׀ Chus Burés ׀ Clara Balmaña ׀ CuldeSac ׀ Curro Claret ׀ Diego Ramos ׀ díez + díez diseño ׀ Emiliana Design Studio ׀ Enoc Armengol ׀ Ernest Perera ׀ Estudi Hac ׀ Estudio Luesma & Vega ׀ Luki Huber ׀ Eugeni Quitllet ׀ Gabriel Lluelles ׀ Gemma Bernal ׀ Mariscal ׀ Gerard Moliné ׀ Guillem Ferran ׀ Héctor Serrano ׀ Jaime Hayón ׀ Jorge Pensi ׀ Josep Lluscà ׀ Josep María Jujol ׀ Julia Mariscal ׀ Lluís Clotet ׀ Luis Eslava ׀ Nadadora ׀ Martín Azúa ׀ Lusesita ׀ Javier Mariscal ׀ Marre Moerel ׀ Gerard Moliné ׀ Merry Kawamura Ganjavian ׀ Nadadora ׀ Oscar Tusquets ׀ Papila ׀ Patricia Urquiola ׀ Pete Sans ׀ Rafael Marquina ׀ Ramón Benedito ׀ Héctor Serrano and Santos Bregaña.
The companies Lékué, ICC, Soler Graells, Sargadelos, Arcos, Castey, Pordamsa, Porvasal, Inmarmol, Alessi & Delica and Lladró are also featured.