Explore Chadwick Rantanen's "Ward" Exhibition: Sculptural Art & Healthcare Facility Design

Chadwick Rantanen's exhibition 'Ward' explores the product design of healthcare facilities and the intended physical and aesthetic experiences they evoke. The show features sculptural objects suspended and arranged within a space adorned with a custom wallpaper inspired by medical clinic aesthetics.

Chadwick Rantanen creates sculptures and installations using everyday and industrially manufactured products, exploring their intended uses and potential alternative applications. His work often embeds these objects within larger structures, extending their original purpose while maintaining their functional integrity in a subtly altered form. For the exhibition 'Ward,' Rantanen presents a new body of work focusing on the design of healthcare environments and the curated sensory experiences they aim to create. A custom wallpaper, derived from common themes, figures, and colors found in doctor's offices and clinics, serves as the backdrop. Rantanen has removed all figures from these source materials, retaining and blending characteristic shapes and colors to form a unique, layered pattern that aestheticizes the neutral, pleasant atmosphere typically projected by commercial wallpapers. Against this smooth, computer-generated backdrop, handmade sculptural elements hang from the ceiling or are arranged on the floor. These structures, resembling natural forms like leaves, are draped with thin, colored films. These films are antimicrobial coatings used on hospital textiles, normally imperceptible, serving as a dual barrier to protect people from germs and enhance the durability and aesthetics of hospital furniture. Rantanen peels these protective films from new rolls of fabric, preserving traces of the textile's pattern, creating a reverse transfer print effect. The manual process of 'skinning' these films results in tears and shreds, which, when viewed independently, suggest decomposition and decay. Thus, 'Ward' constructs an environment where dystopia and comfort intermingle.

Tickets are available via the provided link. The exhibition entry details are not explicitly stated beyond being accessible through ticket purchase from the Secession shop. Visitors are directed to the Secession's ticketing page for more information regarding admission and booking for this exhibition. The page also indicates 'Open Today' with opening hours available as 'di-so / 10-18 uhr'. Tickets are available through the Secession's online shop. The page lists general opening hours, suggesting direct admission during those times upon ticket purchase. Further details on admission requirements are not provided on this page but are likely available via the ticketing link.