Greater less, greater more

Greater less, greater more

Can we live in a future largely created by the possibilities of virtual, augmented or mixed reality technology? A world that has been stripped of matter as much as possible and where thoughts, ideas, theories, shapes, colours, sounds and smells in bits and bytes create an yet unknown and unimaginable future. It would be the greater less. A less by reduction of physical products, physical violence, physical pollution and depletion of our planet. In the meanwhile, we produce, consume, pollute and waste more and more. The greater more is in the gene’s homo sapiens as a homo faber: the working humans with an innate urge to labour and creativity, to develop technology and tools to shape their own environment functionally, symbolic and aesthetically. Designers are the disciplined representatives of the homo faber. Long in service of the greater number, they now explore the world of the greater less with the goal of finding the right size to keep our planet turning around. In a wide variety of projects, ArtEZ shows how they relate to reducing consumption, sustainable design for people and planet or facilitating the conversation about a different, possible and resilient future.