Winner of installation design of the year at Dezeen Awards 2019, this installation by Skaparkollektivet Forma features 17,000 small artworks.

The handmade artworks represent the number of young people expected to be deported from Sweden to Afghanistan.

In the debate on migration, human beings tend to be transformed into anonymous volumes. One figure that made an impression on Swedish art collective was 17,000, as the number of minors expected to be deported. The studio wanted to make the number 17,000 visible and show that it is not just an anonymous volume. The work attempts to show that behind every number there is an individual person.

Over 1,500 artists contributed to the production of the installation.

Judges comments: "The installation is powerful because it allows us to visualise the number of people expected to be deported into something real. The 17,000 people become human rather than just a figure. It addresses a really urgent problem being faced today and emphasises the power of design. Design should make you feel something and Skaparkollektivet Forma has used design as a powerful tool in a thought-provoking way and have used their platform to tell a touching story."

Designer: Skaparkollektivet Forma
Project: 17,000
Winner of: Installation design