The Beach is back. Well sorta. The National Building Museum just kicked off its annual summer block party yesterday. It just happens that Brooklyn based design firm, Snarkitecture, has cemented ten years of creating and collaborating. Put two and two together and we have whats called the Fun House. Curated by Maria Cristina Didero, the trio that is Snarkitecture – Alex Mustonen, Daniel Arsham and Ben Porto, have managed to piece together a decades worth of work into the Great Hall.
Upon entering the National Building Museum, visitors will be greeted by a stark white single family home complete with picket fence. However, in creative studio’s unconventional fashion, the door is not traditional. Rather it looks cavernous, which is a nod to their 2011 installation, Dig. Directly across is the broken mirror, which isn’t broken at all, but still befitting since it’s a fun house. In looking up, sneakerheads, especially Kith loyalists will appreciate the AJ1 chandelier. Things only get better as each room contains collaborative pieces with Medicom Toy via a cast of a 100% Be@rbrick, the Ghostly International record crate, then there more interactive installations such as Marble Run, which is great for all ages. Those dying to jump into the beach ball pit can seek an early fix in the bathroom via the Beach Chair.
There’s much to explore as Snarkitecture delivers really fun and unique twists to the traditional foyer, kitchen, bathroom and the bedroom which is suspended with inflated stalactite noodles (Drift) and a mountain of cushions (Pillow Fort). However, the real fun and instagramming begins as you leave the house and take the ramp up to Playhouse. This particular installation was on display at Exhibit Columbus last year. It sorta reminds us of Julien Hoeber’s Demon’s Hill as depth perception plays a huge role. The end goal here is to get to the beach and for this round, Snarkitecture went with a pool, a kiddy pool and beach chairs galore. Additional seating are repurposed modular shelves turned sideways, which double as lockers. Not a bad way to end the exhibition right?
The Fun House, like all previous Summer Block Party grand scaled installations, is open from 10am – 5pm with special events such as Daybreaker DC, Yoga in the Fun House (commences on Sunday the 15th through August 26th), and late night events on Wednesday nights. Ticketed events can be purchased online. [Link]
