The Centro Gaiás Museum of the Cidade da Cultura in Galicia brings you ‘Da árbore á cadeira’, an exhibition, curated by the architect Carlos Seone, which will take you on an emotional journey from the raw material to the product, from wood to furniture. This exhibition will take you on a journey which begins in the forests of Galicia, with the visions of photographers such as Manuel Vilariño, Vari Caramés, Xosé Caruncho and Maside.

The second part of the exhibition will take you on a journey through various designs, from the very first pioneers to those of contemporary designers, including renowned architects and designers from Galicia such as Manuel Gallego Jorreto, Irisarri y Piñera, Iago Seara and Iñaki Leite.

The exhibition has many different centrepieces which relate furniture design and the industrialisation process of the Galician wood sector with the natural environment from which the raw material used is extracted: the forest. It will also give you an insight into the artistic reflections on how forests are represented in the collective imagination, through the visions of Galician and non-Galician artists who have focused on the unique landscape of this region.

Design, industry, natural heritage and art

The exhibition is divided into four themes:

Design – in Galicia, furniture design has been an integral part of the work of renowned designers and architects who, in the mid twentieth century, brought international modernism to Galicia. The central section of the exhibition will show visitors a series of items of furniture, designed and produced in Galicia, formed of seats and other items of household furniture (tables, desks, lamps, benches, stools, etc.) of which wood is the main component. These items reflect the realism of contemporary Galician furniture design.

Industry – wood takes the centre stage, and for this reason the exhibition focuses particularly on the Galician corporate infrastructure surrounding wood, in terms of the various forms of woodwork, the exploitation of forests and in terms of the creation of new woodwork products in the current market.

Natural heritage – as part of its focus on the use of wood, the exhibition also shows the beauty of the natural environment that produces this fine raw material. Large-scale photographs and maps create an audio-visual/sensory installation showing a series of enclaves of the autochthonous forests of Galicia.

Art – the exhibition is completed with an artistic vision of the forest, with a selection of pictures, photographs, sculptures and installations created by contemporary Galician artists, who are the contemporaries of the designers and furniture shown in the exhibition halls.