IDK

IDK were commissioned to design a flexible ‘Kit of Parts’ system in the Client Fit out phase of the Storehouse project. This system is designed to facilitate the changing object displays in the “Tributaties” of the building’s Public Network. These areas are where the public are invited to look closer than ever before at responsive curated displays from the collection.

The key objectives of the project were:
To design a flexible solution that allows museum teams to create new and dynamic displays within the archive, bridging the gap between the spectacle of “mass storage” and the requirements of public facing exhibition display.
For the solution to make day to day operations more sustainable, ensuring display flexibility without excessive cost, time or the over use of single use object mounts.

IDK worked closely with the curatorial and technical services teams at the V&A to understand how objects are stored and how these methods can be modified and adapted to honour the display experience for the visitor too. The result of the close collaboration was a system of folded metal parts and moveable mesh wall panels borne from extensive design iteration and prototyping that blend into the base build archival racking - conceived as a critical part of the Storehouse system. The Kit of Parts blends the pragmatism of archival storage, the changing political role of the museum archive, with the responsiveness of retail display. The refined palette of a few folded metal parts can be flexibly arranged across the moveable mesh walls to create near-infinite display configurations. The tool-free design of the system allows for a more direct engagement with the displays aimed at non-technical persons within the V&A, fostering a more direct relationship between curator, object and the public.

Project: Kit Of Parts
Location: London, V&A Storehouse
Year: 2025
Type: Museum & Culture
Collaborators: Structure Workshop, Solved, Fieldwork Facility