The Solar Biennial
An inclusive perspective on the energy of the sun to explore the meaning and possibilities of solar energy, counterbalancing the prevailing technological and economic viewpoints on solar energy.
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The first edition of The Solar Biennial, an initiative of solar designers Marjan van Aubel and Pauline van Dongen, took place from September 8 to October 2022 in both Rotterdam and Eindhoven. During these two months, people from different disciplines exchanged and worked together to create a natural, meaningful and aesthetic everyday living environment, broadening the one-sided technological and economic perspective of solar energy.
It counterbalanced the prevailing technological and economic viewpoints on solar energy. For seven weeks, the biennial focused on the human angle: a solar-powered world that went beyond scientific research and uniform solar panels. Cultural practices and place-specific energy determine how the post-carbon future will develop.
'How can we design a post-fossil future using the power of the sun?'
The Solar Biennial looks at the broader scope of solar energy through five 'lenses', these alternative perspectives manoeuvre beyond efficiency in their own way: personal, social, environmental, spatial and digital/virtual. In cooperation with various partners, organisations and designers, the program offers visitors critical yet accessible insights on change and how we need to move towards a solar society before it’s too late.
The exhibition ‘The Energy Show - Sun, Solar and Human Power’ marked the start: a widespread international network, an invitation, and a design manifesto, all in one.
More on the next edition soon!
Exhibited at Het Nieuwe Instituut, Dutch Design Week 2022, BlueCity
Co-Founded with Pauline van Dongen
Team: Pallas Agterberg, Lidi Brouwer, Joke Hoeven, Tanja Koning, Puck Kroon, Kitty Leering, Micha Scheffer, Jeanette Verdonck
and Jessica Voorwinde
Photography by Lindy Hengst, Studio Sander Plug
Video by Thomas de Boer
Produced by André Marques
Music by Tim Wes
Production by Together & Dedicated
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