Debuting publicly for the first time, Matter of Course, a new Berlin-based female design collective, opened Balancing Acts, a 3-day design exhibition celebrating the value of collaboration and finding balance in contemporary life. The exhibition was curated by Anava Projects and took place from the 11th to the 13th of September 2021 at Friends Space.

Conceived as six vignettes, each playful installation included stacked, suspended, and juxtaposed works by multiple designers from the 11-person collective. The furniture, lighting, textiles, carpets, and accessories were composed together to express the values that drew these diverse creatives together in the first place: there is strength, poetry, and joy in collaboration, offering a support structure to share ideas, struggles, and experiences.
The exhibition, at the same time, served as a reflection of the designers’ commitment to finding balance: between the needs of individuals versus collectives; between personal and professional responsibilities, between form, color, and material; between feeling gratitude for what is given and the striving to innovate, experiment, and grow.

The designers are all guided by a deep respect for our ecological and social environment, each presenting strong, individual points of view while honoring the delicate and courageous act of coming together, wherever you are, whoever you are.

Photography: Anne Deppe