Exploitation of the Exotic
Speculative Design
Exploitation of the Exotic draws parallels between the exportation and immigration patterns of illegally felled ipe wood and sex workers from South America to Spain. It critiques the luxury industries in which these exploitations occur by proposing speculative spaces designed and pornified to highlight the fetishistic lens through which these subjects are currently consumed. The project reflects on real-life cases of abuse in both fields by reimagining a space that has enabled such mistreatment, offering an alternative that is simultaneously alleviating, critical, and satirical.
Tools used:
Rhino
Adobe Creative Suite
The design process was rooted in a detailed analysis of the luxury escort industry in Spain, with a research phase that followed a real life case of misconduct towards a Brazilian escort. It worked towards identifying the main issue, characters involved, confrontational points of view, and spaces and media in which they operated. It then went on to a more in depth analysis of the scale in which the conflict operates and its position across public and private spaces.
The study revealed a relationship with the luxury construction industry, in which Brazilian ipe wood exists under similar patterns that ultimately connect its use and manipulation with patterns identified in the luxury escort industry. Hence, the research expanded into a larger context and was situated under broader conflicts.
The research culminated in a speculative design proposal which transformed the place of origin of the original conflict into a transgressive space. Through a series of photo collages, the project intended to open up conversations around both luxury industries and their subjects, while disclosing a possible alternative that responded to the needs, agents, behaviours and conflicts previously identified.
