Objectual Grammar

Objectual Grammar Antique Objects Exhibition x Gallery eom

Date: 13 October - 23 December 2022

Venue: Gallery eom, Barcelona, Spain

Curator: Yunxia Jiang

Programme Director: Wei Mo

Objectual Grammar explores the visual and material syntax of 20th-century design through a curated selection of antique objects. The exhibition brings together works by renowned designers and makers, including Alfredo Villasana, Antonio Pineda, Arne Johansen, Vivianna Torun Bülow-Hübe, Leonore Doskow, Kaunis Koru, and Jacob Hull, among others.

Spanning influential movements such as Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and Modernist design, the featured pieces reflect a diverse range of cultural aesthetics and technical mastery. From sculptural silverwork to minimalist forms, each object tells a story of its time, crafted with intention, imbued with meaning, and still resonant today.

The title Objectual Grammar speaks to the idea that objects, like language, carry meaning through their form and context. These three distinct design eras each shaped a recognisable stylistic ‘grammar’—a set of visual rules and codes through which ideas were expressed materially. In this framework, objects become words, and time becomes syntax. Each period acts as a linguistic system, structuring how materials are transformed into culturally legible forms.

Curated by Yunxia Jiang, the exhibition invites viewers to consider how designed objects communicate beyond function—through form, ornamentation, and craftsmanship—revealing a grammar of beauty shaped by history, and still legible to contemporary eyes.