Futurama presents a futuristic vision of Peckham, drawing on the rich history and legacy of international World’s Fairs and Expos. At these fairs many countries staged exhibitions on innovative products, manufacturing processes and art to give visitors a glimpse of different cultures from around the world.
In 1939 a World’s Fair was held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the first exposition to be based on the future, with an opening slogan of “Dawn of a New Day”, and it allowed all visitors to take a look at “the world of tomorrow”.
The artist invited a youth group called Leaders of Tomorrow to re-imagine and improve their south east London environment, addressing ideas of collaboration, cooperation and participation.
“I took the idea of the 1939 World’s Fair as a starting point for this exhibition as I felt the ethos of presenting advances in science, technology and culture in one place would offer the young people that live in Peckham the opportunity to present their vision for the future in a way that establishes a dialogue between individuals and communities about possible directions that our society might take.”
Harold Offeh
Through site visits, tours and discussions led by Offeh, the young people identified design solutions to improve their local area. These include innovative public space seating, signage and lighting, released by design team Glass Hill. The exhibition was a showroom of these designed objects, video and images dedicated to a dynamic future vision.
