Argentina in the global design ecosystem

Since its beginnings, Argentine design has managed to integrate a social, cultural, geographic and symbolic diversity unique to this part of the world, and, from a base of much ingenuity and capacity for resilience, has served as the means of adaptation to a creative model that is diversified, dynamic and responsive to political and economic changes. The IDA Foundation (Research in Argentine Design) has since 2013 housed and disseminated the country’s largest design collection. This represents an effort of epic proportions, previously unseen in Latin America, and that in 2022 earned the award for Best Design Archive from Monocle magazine. On this occasion, IDA is showcasing a varied selection of iconic cases chosen according to their historic relevance: whether for their alternative discourses, regional aesthetics or technical innovations, these projects invite us to reconsider the tangible and intangible legacy that they contributed to the global history of design in the 20th and 21st century. Comprising creatives based in Argentina and, in some cases, those who migrated to become involved in the major global scenes and movements, these figures explore the ambiguous spaces between design, art, craft, the technical and the scientific. Understanding cultural and design links is a strategic way of broadening and re-semanticizing the historic narrative with other disruptive ideas.