Unboxed Exhibition JO.55

Variation 01: RIT City Art Space, Rochester, NY USA. Unboxed: the topography of Josh Owen is an exhibition of instructional, utilitarian objects that define an evolving and active archive of designer, educator, and author Josh Owen’s work, teaching and observations. JO.55, the inaugural edition of Josh Owen’s solo exhibition, is a modular, traveling installation project in collaboration with RZLBD (Reza Aliabadi, Toronto, ON) and ARBR Studios (Rochester, NY). The show debuts with 55 display boxes, one for each year of Owen’s life, allowing for the show to be a continuously evolving snapshot of his career as a designer and educator.Using excavation as its central metaphor, the exhibition unfolds like a topographical landscape. The inaugural edition, JO.55, presents the initial 55 modular plywood boxes arranged on the gallery floor. These boxes function as both display units and transportable crates, allowing the exhibition to adapt to various spaces, emphasizing the dynamic and evolving nature of Josh’s work. The exhibition is divided into three sections by color-coded trays: Professional (white), Pedagogical (black), and Phenomenological (red). Rather than isolating individual works on the walls, the exhibition presents them together in a cohesive, immersive display, offering viewers a collective experience that integrates Josh’s creative history. The installation celebrates how life and work are inextricably linked and how design can be a lens through which we explore both the material and emotional worlds. Photography by Elizabeth Lamark.