Vitra Design Museum has unveiled its 10 major exhibitions for 2017, which will be located in four locations on the Vitra Campus, Weil am Rhein, Germany. The Museum will host The World of Charles & Ray Eames in Vitra Design Museum by Frank Gehry, Dieter Rams' Modular World in Vitra Schaudepot by Herzog&de Meuron and Brutalist Playgrounds in Vitra Design Museum Gallery while The Fire Station by Zaha Hadid offers room for specific projects and installations.

After the opening of the Schaudepot in June 2016, the Vitra Design Museum has more than doubled its exhibition space. In 2017, the Museum shows ten exhibitions in four locations on the Vitra Campus. The major temporary exhibitions continue to be on view in the main building by Frank Gehry. The Vitra Schaudepot by Herzog & de Meuron displays the collection and special exhibitions related to the collection. Smaller, experimental shows are presented in the Vitra Design Museum Gallery.

Now, take a closer look at the Vitra Design Museum's exhibitions and make your event calendar to visit each of them. 

Vitra Design Museum: Main space for temporary exhibitions (architect: Frank Gehry, 1989)

Vitra Design Museum, Frank Gehry, 1989. Image © Vitra Design Museum, Thomas Dix.

Hello, Robot. Design between Human and Machine / February 11 – May 14, 2017 

Science fiction becomes reality: Robotics has been finding its way into our lives for a number of years now. In this exhibition, the Vitra Design Museum will present a variety of exhibits, including examples of robots from homes, industry or medicine, but also media installations, computer games as well as ex- amples from film and literature. 

It shows how robotics is changing our lives today – and how design is changing robotics. Additionally, it broadens our view of the ethical and political issues associated with robotics today featuring works by Bruce Sterling, Douglas Coupland, Joris Laarman, Carlo Ratti, Dunne & Raby, Philip Beesley and many others. 

Opening: 10 February 2017

Yves Gellie, Human Version 2.07 Nexi, 2009. Image © Yves Gellie, Galerie du jour agnès b, Galerie Baudoin Lebon

Shawn Maximo, Going Green, 2016. Vinyl print. Image © Shawn Maximo

AKA, Musio K. Image © AKA, LLC

Francis Bitonti Studio Inc., Molecule Shoe, 2015 3D print. Image © Francis Bitonti Photo: 2017 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Together! The New Architecture of the Collective / June 3 – September 10, 2017 

The scarcity and expense of housing is continually on the rise. In recent years, new forms of communal living and building have emerged all over the world in response to this challenge. The exhibition pre- sents the most innovative examples, illustrates new types of living and forms of participation, and intro- duces architects of the movement. 

The exhibition also draws attention to historic predecessors, from utopian settlements of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, to social housing projects in the 1920s, to protest movements from the 1960s to the 1980s. Featuring works by Buol & Zünd, Dorte Man- drup, Michael Maltzan and Ryue Nishizawa. 

Opening: 2 June 2017

The World of Charles & Ray Eames / September 30, 2017 – February 25, 2018 

Charles and Ray Eames are among the most important designers of the 20th century. They designed innovative furniture and other industrial products, films, books, exhibitions, multi-media installations, in- teriors and much more. An Eames Celebration will present a series of exhibitions and events, that will be the largest exploration of the Eames’s work that has ever been shown in a museum, coinciding with Charles Eames’ 110th birthday. 

The estate of Charles & Ray Eames – which has been in the holdings of the Vitra Design Museum since 1988 – will be made accessible to the public. The main exhibition The World of Charles & Ray Eames in the Gehry building will be at the centre of this Eames season. Con- ceived as an exhaustive retrospective, it shows the many facets of Charles and Ray Eames’s work and comprises objects from collections all over the world. Exhibition curated and organised by the Barbican Centre, London. 

Opening: 29 September 2017

Alex Matter riding a Plywood Elephant The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Cover of Arts & Architecture, July 1943, designed by Ray Eames The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Wire Chairs with Eames House Bird, 1953 Photograph: Charles Eames The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Charles Eames in the Lounge Chair & Ottoman Photograph for an advertisement, 1956 The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Eames House Living Room Photograph: Antonia Mulas The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Eames House courtyard Photograph: Timothy Street-Porter The World of Charles & Ray Eames Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum. Image © Eames Office LLC.

Vitra Schaudepot: Space for the collection and focus exhibitions (architects: Herzog & de Meuron, 2016) 

Exterior view Schaudepot, designed by the architects Herzog & de Meuron. Image © Vitra Design Museum, Mark Niedermann

The Vitra Design Museum Collection – 1800 to the present Permanent Exhibition 

On 3 June 2016 a new building opened on the Vitra Campus: The Vitra Schaudepot, designed by Herzog & de Meuron. The centrepiece of the Schaudepot is a permanent exhibition of more than 400 key pieces of modern furniture design from 1800 to the present. 

This presentation is complemented by a temporary exhibition and the Schaudepot Lab, offering visitors the opportunity to explore developments and design processes as well as the diversity of materials used. With the Schaudepot, the Vitra Design Museum presents one of the world’s largest permanent exhibitions and research facilities on modern furniture design.

Dieter Rams. Modular World Until March 12, 2017 | Temporary Space 

Dieter Rams’s designs for the Braun company are legendary, and his design principles are more rele- vant today than ever. The newly opened Schaudepot presents an exhibition of Rams’ work. It features a selection of the furnishings and electrical appliances designed by Rams, including key works such as the phonograph Snow White’s Coffin and the 606 Universal Shelving System. 

The show is supplemented by historic visual material and a video interview in which Rams discusses his design philosophy. Due to their timeless quality, Rams’ products are exemplars of sustainability and continue to exert an influence on contemporary designers.

The new Vitsoe showroom, Frankfurt, around 1971. Image © Ingeborg Kracht Rams

Portrait of Dieter Rams. Image © Michael Kretzer

RT 20 Tischsuper. Image © Andreas Sütterlin

TP1 Portable Record Player, 1961. Image © Procter & Gamble

Installation view: Dieter Rams. Modular World. Image © Vitra Design Museum, Christoph Sagel

Monobloc – A Chair for the World / March 17 – June 18, 2017 | Temporary Space 

It is the most widely used piece of furniture in the world: the cheap stackable white plastic chair. The exhibition tells its story. The idea of making a chair out of a single piece of material has fascinated designers for a long time – from attempts using sheet metal in the 1920s to the legendary Panton Chair (1967) to the white plastic chair, whose rise began in the 1970s, and which can be found in nearly every front yard today. 

The exhibition also features contemporary works, illustrating how designers and artists engage with the Monobloc design today to address issues of globalisation, consumerism or sustainability. 

Opening: 16 March 2017

Kazam! The Prototypes of Charles & Ray Eames / September 30, 2017 – February 25, 2018 

As part of the big Eames Celebration at the Vitra Design Museum in autumn 2017, the Schaudepot will present a show that illustrates the design process of the designers. It is based on prototypes and experimental models from the designers’ estate that has been part of the Vitra Design Museum’s since 1988. 

Opening: 29 September 2017

Vitra Design Museum Gallery: Space for topical, experimental exhibitions (architect: Frank Gehry, 2011)

Exterior view, Vitra Design Museum Gallery. Image © Vitra Design Museum 2011, Bettina Matthiessen

The Brutalist Playground / January 14- April 16, 2017

Brutalist architecture is a controversial movement that originated in Britain in the 1950s, giving rise to structures with an uncompromisingly rugged aesthetic. Throughout the entire country, large residential complexes were erected, primarily in concrete, some of which featured unconventionally designed playgrounds for children. 

Archival materials from the collections of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) have been used to recreate Brutalist playgrounds – hybrid architectural installations and walk-through sculptures for both children and adults. The exhibition was designed by RIBA, the architectural collective Assemble (winner of the 2015 Turner Prize), and the artist Simon Terrill. Opening: 13 January 2017

Installation view -The Brutalist Playground, S1, Artspace, Sheffield, 2016. Image: Alun Bull, © RIBA 

Installation view -The Brutalist Playground, RIBA, London, 2015. Image: Tristan Fewings © RIBA

Installation view -The Brutalist Playground, S1 Artspace, Sheffield, 2016. Image: Alun Bull © RIBA

Installation view-The Brutalist Playground, S1 Artspace, Sheffield, 2016. Image: Alun Bull © RIBA

Mudun - Urban Cultures in Transit / May 13-August 20, 2017

In many metropolises of the Arab world, growing urbanisation has resulted in a new cosmopolitan cultural landscape. Baghdad, Dubai, Cairo or Tunis are instances of this development. They provide room for critical debates, subcultures and avant-garde artistic movements. 

The exhibition critically ex- amines the effects of this transiting process on the cities’ people, architecture and neighbourhoods, both in the region and its diaspora. This project is a cooperation between the Vitra Design Museum and the creators of the magazine Brownbook, who have been documenting contemporary urban cul- ture in the Middle East and North Africa for the past ten years. 

Opening: 12 May 2017

Play Parade. An Eames Exhibition for Kids / September 9, 2017-January 21, 2018 

As part of the exploration of the work of Charles and Ray Eames at the Vitra Design Museum, the Gallery will show an exhibition that assembles toys and children’s furniture in a colourful spatial instal- lation – to look at, discover and participate. 

Opening: 8 September 2017

Vitra Fire Station: Space for special projects and installations (architect: Zaha Hadid, 1993)

Zaha Hadid's Fire Station. Image courtesy of Vitra Design Museum

The World of Charles & Ray Eames: Films / September 30, 2017 – February 25, 2018 

As part of the exploration of the work of Charles and Ray Eames at the Vitra Design Museum, the Fire Station will show a selection of the cinematic work of Charles and Ray Eames. The designers have realised more than 30 films, some experimental and ahead of their time. On view are classics such as Powers of Ten, but also works that are yet to be discovered. 

Opening: 29 September 2017

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