'Public Space with Private Intentions' is exhibited at ALCOVA 2023 in Milan

'Public Space with Private Intentions' by Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson at ALCOVA 2023. Photo: @agnesebedini @piercarloquecchia @dslstudio_1. Courtesy of Swedish Girls.

As part of ALCOVA 2023, Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson exhibit an extension of Utomhusverket, commissioned and first presented at ArkDes in 2022. Their Public Space with Private Intentions occupies the entrance to the exhibition, which took place in tandem with Fuorisalone – Milan Design Week 2023.

Following a successful exhibition period at ArkDes between June 2022 and April 2023, Utomhusverket has traveled to Italy to form part of ALCOVA 2023 – a platform that "seeks to shine a spotlight on the most forward-looking design being produced today." Occupying the entrance space to the Porta Vittoria abattoir on Via Molise in Milan, the exhibition ran from the 17-23 April.

'Public Space with Private Intentions' by Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson at ALCOVA 2023. Photo: @agnesebedini @piercarloquecchia @dslstudio_1. Courtesy of Swedish Girls.

We believe that some public spaces should have private intentions. If the public space of the city appeals to a broad and normative public, such neutrality often works to expand some parts of the public realm while restricting others.

 

 

Through the lenses of pleasure and the emotional relationships we forge with the spaces we share, this installation challenges tendencies towards ‘neutral’ public space. It makes room for visibility and invisibility, trysts, assignation, and play. —Mira Bergh & Josefin Zachrisson

 

'Public Space with Private Intentions' by Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson at ALCOVA 2023. Photo: @agnesebedini @piercarloquecchia @dslstudio_1. Courtesy of Swedish Girls.

At ArkDes in Stockholm, Utomhusverket 2022 hosted a series of events and performances during the year:

An Edible Feast

During the vernissage at ArkDes in 2022, visitors feasted on GRACE / GRAZE / GRAZING LAND – an edible performance led by Moa Marklund.

I Promise You a Rose Garden

During the closing weeks of Utomhusverket 2022 visitors took part in a fashion and art performance led Ellen X × AsystemQ.

About Mira Bergh & Josefin Zachrisson

Mira Bergh (b. 1993) and Josefin Zachrisson (b. 1994) have collaborated since they graduated from Beckmans College of Design in 2019. The duo is based between Milan and Stockholm and works across objects and installations, with a conceptual and experimental approach. By questioning norms and acknowledging values beyond function, they aim to challenge preconceived notions in materials, contexts, and interactions. They are both a part of the art and design collective Swedish Girls.

Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson (Photo: Pavel Golik. Courtesy of Mira Bergh and Josefin Zachrisson)