17.4.–24.5.2026

Forming a control room of ceramic works, Hanna Valle examines the aesthetics of future interfaces and invites us to consider how design organises everyday experience and the technological infrastructures of society.

What kinds of visual forms make an interface appear unfamiliar or novel, as an expression of an alternative social order?

Visual communication plays a central role in the world-building of science fiction cinema. The imagined futuristic interfaces in films such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Solaris, Ghost in the Shell, and Alien have inspired real-world technological design and visual language in their respective eras. Yet visions of future technologies are never neutral; they reflect the reality in which they are conceived, existing technologies, fashion trends, prevailing political systems, and the values of their creators.

User interfaces and technical tools shape everyday routines, condensing the complexity of society into more manageable forms. At the same time, they define how we act and what we consider possible. Who, or what, guides these choices? How does our body participate in this interaction: do we move holograms through sensors attached to our fingers, or do we press keys?

In the exhibition Control Room, Hanna Valle interprets user interfaces through the ancient material of ceramics, instead of the futuristic, glossy aluminium and plastic surfaces familiar from sci-fi aesthetics. In the works, screen reflections and buttons solidify into clay tablets, leaving open the question of what commands they produce.

Interfaces and objects in science fiction films often aim to evoke a sense of aesthetic otherness; yet, upon closer inspection, they frequently prove impractical or dysfunctional. The tactile and weighty nature of clay highlights the material dimension of design: design is not merely visual, but a lived, embodied reality. The slow process of working with ceramics becomes a haptic method for exploring and testing futuristic user interfaces.

The process of making the artworks also reflects on how training in visual communication design influences visual choices from a fine art perspective. The sculptures form modular systems, similar to those required in graphic design.

Hanna Valle is a graphic designer and visual artist specialising in various forms of visual storytelling and communication. In her graphic design practice, she is especially drawn to examining textuality and music as integral components of visual systems. In her artistic practice, Valle examines the passage of time as well as questions related to the visual interpretation of memory and information through her relief-like works.

Welcome to celebrate the opening on April 16 from 5 to 7 pm!