Serpentine Galleries: Formafantasma - Cambio (In-Person & Digital)

The Serpentine Galleries are delighted to welcome you to visit the exhibition Forfantasma: Cambio.  



Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin are designers who dissect the ecological and political responsibilities of their discipline. Their holistic approach reaches back into the history of a particular material used by humans, out towards the patterns of supply chains that have developed to support and expand its use, and forward to the future of that material’s survival in relation to human consumption.  This multidisciplinary exhibition highlights the crucial role that design can play in our environment, and its responsibility to look beyond the edges of its borders.  The exhibition curators will be on site to talk to guests.

Please note that this event has now passed.

Booking Required - this event is now fully booked. 

If you would like to be added to the waiting list for this event, kindly submit your details HERE and we will get in touch if there are any cancellations.

Due to current circumstances, heightened precautions are in place to protect guests, limiting numbers at each event. It is more important than ever that guests who sign up for an in-person event, but are not longer able to attend, email saraw@serpentinegalleries.org to cancel their RSVP, allowing others a chance to participate. 

Covid-19 Related Advice for this visit:

Please bring and wear a face covering

Arrive on time (we may not be able to accommodate visitors who arrive more than 15 minutes late)

Please sanitise hands on entry (we’ll provide the sanitiser)

Observe physical distancing

Follow the one-way route around the gallery

Please bring your own headphones

No access to public toilets

Please only come if you can travel safely, and NOTE group size is limited to a maximum of 6 people. If you can’t make your visit for any reason, please cancel so another visitor can see the exhibition.

Importantly, if you are sick or fall into one of the vulnerable groups then you must postpone your visit.

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Video Content Information:

Cambio (2020)

Constructed in the format of a visual essay, this film investigates how the industry of timber has evolved over time. It asks how a networked understanding of materials can be applied to a more holistic approach to design, and draws connections between timber’s physical materiality and the abstract but pervasive conditions of exploitation, colonialism, and consumerism.

The film starts with the appearance of primordial plants on Earth, their evolution into trees, and the subsequent flourishing of human life across the planet. It continues with the global expansion of the timber industry in conjunction with the European imperialist agenda, and its later shift towards the development of sustainable forestry practices and environmental conservation.

Shot in a former Italian plantation for paper production, it makes use of chroma key compositing – a process by which it is possible to ‘layer’ images over existing footage by introducing green screens into the frame while shooting, and collaging other images or footage in later. Various different colours have been used in television and film to achieve this effect, but green has become one of the most commonly used – as with most technologies – due to human features. The human eye evolved to differentiate movement and depth against the green of the forest, and what has become an instinctive disregard for flora in favour of the potentially dangerous fauna has been called ‘plant blindness’. Here, the forest is never a background – it is the subject matter and focus of the film.

Part of Formafantasma’s Cambio exhibition,  at the Serpentine Sackler Gallery until 15 November.

Find out more at cambio.website

Frieze is committed to implementing best health and safety practices to best protect our staff, partners, and audiences. With this in mind, all persons attending any Frieze Week locations are reminded of the following;

• Do not travel to the PV should yourself or anyone you live with be showing symptoms of Coronavirus including; a new and continuous cough, shortness of breath, a fever or loss of taste or smell.  
• Should you or someone you have been in contact with develop symptoms within a week of attending the PV, please self-isolate and notify a member of Frieze immediately. 
• Face masks are compulsory at all times on the premises, proof of exemption must be shown if a face mask cannot be worn. Masks must fully cover mouth and nose, shields will not be acceptable.  
• All attendees are required to complete track and trace information to enter the venue. 
• Please download the NHS Covid-19 Track and Trace App in advance of your visit as you will be asked to scan the QR code with your smart phone on arrival, as required by government guidelines