'More than Human', a new exhibition at London’s Design Museum (opening on 11 July and running until 5 October 2025), explores the idea of non-human-centric design. It focuses on design that considers how other species interact with the built world, inviting us to reimagine design as a tool for interconnection and conservation.
‘More Than Human’: non-human-centric design on view at Design Museum
The Alusta Pavilion by Elina Koivisto and Maiju Suomi
‘More Than Human’ assembles over 140 works by more than 50 artists, architects and designers, all asking how they might respond to the living world rather than dominate it.
The answer is explored in three sections. The first, ‘Being Landscape’, showcases art and design that represents the connection between humanity and nature, including organic-inspired paintings by Solange Pessoa; drawings by Hélio Melo which reflect his memories of his birthplace, the Brazilian state of Amazonas; and photographs by Federico Borella and Michela Balboni that document the Italian Rumiti ritual, in which men dressed as trees silently process through the hills of Basilicata. Audiences will also discover bronze masks inspired by pagan ritual figures made from corn husks and basketry from the Ye’kuana community of the Venezuelan Amazon.
An image from the Italian Rumiti ritual by Federico Borella and Michela Balboni
The second section, ‘Making With The World’, thinks about practical, design-led solutions for ecological restoration. It includes marine infrastructure designer Reef Design Lab’s ‘Living Seawalls’ and ‘Modular Artificial Reef Structure II’, and a reconstruction of the Alusta Pavilion by Elina Koivisto and Maiju Suomi – a mini‑park that provides shelter for both humans and insects. Also featured: Johanna Seelemann’s ‘Oase’ collection – terracotta vessels which use ancient Greek irrigation methods to hydrate trees more efficiently.
The Oase collection by Johanna Seelemann
Micrographia by Johanna Seeleman
At a time when human activity is changing the natural world in ever-more detrimental ways, this exhibition offers a vision of how design, art, and architecture might help us reconnect with the more-than-human world.
'More than Human' is on view at the Design Museum until 5 October 2025
Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High St, London W8 6AG, designmuseum.org
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