Nirvana. Strange Forms of Pleasure

‘Nirvana. Strange Forms of Pleasure’ is Switzerland’s first international-level exhibition to be devoted to forms of pleasure in contemporary creation, exploring design as well as fashion and contemporary art, and the first comprehensive study of the influence of erotica on design and fashion, by turns bold, luxurious and mysterious.

The exhibition features a selection of contemporary designers who draw on the iconography of pleasure in their creative work, finding inspiration in erotic and fetishist literature, along with the images, objects and clothing to which they frequently refer. The exhibition invites us to examine our own ideas and perceptions of pleasure. Designers cover the body with close-fitting garments or sensual materials, adorning them with jewellery that is aesthetically as well as erotically pleasing, creating furniture with evocative forms, works of art in which beauty and perfection are spiced with the whiff of brimstone. Nirvana shows that society’s desire for sensual pleasure remains vigorous in our digital age.

The exhibition focuses on design, fashion, and also contemporary art, which helps to open our eyes: its aim is to examine our relationship with the forms and objects that give physical expression to our unconscious perceptions of sexuality and our private notions of pleasure. Celebrated and up-and-coming designers alike bring these multiple influences into the spotlight, placing in the public sphere what has hitherto remained private. Three major creators are given carte blanche within the exhibition: Mark Woods (designer), Betony Vernon (jewellery designer) and Nika Zupanc (designer).

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