The UB, in the exhibition “Emergency! Designs against COVID-19”
With the work carried out within the framework of CAR3D project, lecturers from the bachelorʼs degree in Design of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the UB are taking part in the exhibition “Emergency! Designs against COVID-19”, organized by the Design Museum of Barcelona (plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, 37). The exhibition, which one can access for free until January 10, 2021, counts on the participation of more than fifty initiatives that, from the field of design, show a fast response to the urgent needs of the health crisis resulting from COVID-19. These proposals cover diverse fields with a goal in common: designing to help.
With the work carried out within the framework of CAR3D project, lecturers from the bachelorʼs degree in Design of the Faculty of Fine Arts of the UB are taking part in the exhibition “Emergency! Designs against COVID-19”, organized by the Design Museum of Barcelona (plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, 37). The exhibition, which one can access for free until January 10, 2021, counts on the participation of more than fifty initiatives that, from the field of design, show a fast response to the urgent needs of the health crisis resulting from COVID-19. These proposals cover diverse fields with a goal in common: designing to help.
Since the first wave of the pandemic, the Barcelona Group of ..., formed by professors of the bachelorʼs degree of Design of the UB, has been working within the CAR3D project. Specifically, its work has consisted of designing, developing and validating personal protective equipment, such as masks and face protection, that meet European Union specifications so that they are available for its reproduction throughout Europe. Some of these designs can now be seen in this exhibition.
The aim of the CAR3D project is to use technologies such as 3D printing to improve Europe's capacity in the additive manufacturing of necessary medical equipment in the pandemic management. The PPE created through the project has no patent, so local manufacturers are free to produce this type of high-quality material. CAR3D also has a web platform to connect validated producers and consumers across Europe. It currently has more than twenty suppliers from six different countries.
The Hospital Sant Joan de Déu in Barcelona leads this international project, funded by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology in Health (EIT Health), and in which the Barcelona Group of… works with the company BCN 3D, the technological center CIM UPC and the Sant Joan de Déu Foundation. All of them participate in a coordinated way to ensure collaborative work in all phases of the creation of PPE: from the design to the checks made by end users, who are medical professionals.
Designs that have helped to save lives
The exhibition by the Barcelona Design Museum is a good opportunity to learn about the work of the CAR3D project, as well as other initiatives, public and private, that show how the world of design has responded to the challenges of this pandemic. More than fifty pieces are exhibited: a good part of the contributions of hygienic masks made by designers and companies, as well as protection devices for health use, proposals for the development of clinical machinery and a prominent section of graphic displays and campaigns communication to contribute to the fight COVID-19.
The collection is not closed, it will continue to grow in order to collect new initiatives that may arise to respond to the exceptional nature of the moment.