This Immersive Fun House Is Full Of More Than Just Sideshow Tricks

published Jul 24, 2018

Page URL

We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.

For a comprehensive reminder of just how wonderfully left field Snarkitecture has gone with its designs since its inception a decade ago, you’ll definitely want to check out the New York-based studio’s Fun House exhibit at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.

Curated by Maria Cristina Didero as a part of the museum’s Summer Block series, the exhibit features various interactive rooms filled with some of the more popular Snarkitecture creations, plus a few new concepts. The Fun House serves as the main installment, displaying an off-kilter take on the traditional home complete with an all-white palette and picket fence.

Visitors access the exhibit through an area designated as the “front yard,” where a specially revamped version of 2012’s A Memorial Bowling sits. Upon exiting, they find themselves in the “backyard” space, which features 2017’s Playhouse along with a very inviting pair of ball pits filled to the brim with plastic recyclable balls.

Founded by artist Daniel Arsham and architects Alex Mustonen and Ben Porto, Snarkitecture has made quite the esteemed reputation for itself by creating pieces that tend to simultaneously perplex and stimulate the mind, like the famous slanted slip chair that also makes an appearance in the Fun House’s study.

“Fun House represents a unique opportunity for us to bring together a number of different Snarkitecture-designed interiors, installations, and objects into a single, immersive experience,” said Mustonen. “Our practice aims to create moments that make architecture accessible and engaging to a wide, diverse audience. With that in mind, we are excited to invite all visitors to the National Building Museum to an exhibition and installation that we hope is both unexpected and memorable.”

Museum members can gain entry to the Fun House for free; adult admission costs $16, visitors ages 3-17, students with ID, AARP members and seniors is $13; ages 3 and up get in for $10 with a six-person limit for families with a military ID. The exhibit is open through September 3.

Filed in: