Dear Social Club Members!
After a much-needed summer break, we’re here to keep you company during the chilly autumn days with some exciting new reads.
Here’s what you missed!
SMOOTH DOORWAYS
Article by Naomi Collier Broms
In central Laos, 10 km south-west of Phonsavan, thousands of giant sandstone jars can be seen protruding from the rolling hills of the region. Their shape is simple and cylindrical, their lichen-covered facades worn by weather and time. This place is known as the Plain of Jars. Spread across hundreds of square kilometers and dating back an estimated 2,600 years, the megalithic landscape strikes an ancient nerve. Something enchanting, strange, and palpably old hangs in the air. This feeling is perhaps only enhanced by the mystery and speculation surrounding the objects. Some archaeologists believe the jars to be urns; residual tombs from ancient burial sites. Other theories point to the objects as transitory vessels, used during the early stages of funerary rites before cremation took place.
Continue reading here. (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
NÆRVERK/NEARNESS
Art jewellery and wearable ideas
Jewellery is something most people feel a connection to. It’s intimate—closely tied to the body—and needs to be worn to be complete. More than just decoration, jewellery often expresses identity and how we want to be seen. To mark the 50th anniversary of the Norwegian Association for Craft Artists (Norske Kunsthåndverkere), gallery for contemporary art in Oslo Nitja has invited 39 influential and forward-thinking artists to take part in a large exhibition. The selected works span from 1975 to today, making connections across generations. Iconic pieces by established artists are shown alongside new approaches from a younger generation, offering a chance to see how small, wearable objects can embody bold artistic ideas. One of the three curators, Monica Holmen, takes Current Obsession on an exhibition walkthrough in a short interview.
Read more here. (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
DECODING IDENTITY
Article by Coco Simons
In the smallest room of the Cooper Hewitt’s Making Home triennial, the usual boundaries between exhibition and archive were intentionally loosened. The Underground Library, a site-specific installation by the Black Artists and Designers Guild (BADG), invited visitors to read, sit, and move through a space designed to resemble a domestic interior rather than a gallery. There were no vitrines, no signs asking visitors not to touch. Instead, design objects were presented as part of a lived-in environment: chairs, shelves, and tables that encouraged interaction, proximity, and reflection.
The Mwasi Armoire by designer Kim Mupangilaï stood on the north side of the room, tall and unobstructed. More than a cabinet, it appeared as a standing figure, a shield, a presence. It anchored the space not as a decorative object but as a kind of guardian, safeguarding the room much like a family relic might safeguard memory.
Continue reading here. (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
UPCOMING
• Open Call Designers in Residence 2026 (Öffnet in neuem Fenster): 12 September - 3 November 2025
• Open Call For Writers 2026 by Current Obsession: opens 13 October - 8 December 2025
• #9 The Radical Surface activation: Inner/Outer Glow (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)
As always, we would love to hear from you in case you have any membership related questions at veronika@current-obsession.com (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)!
Datum
18.09.2025