harry-barrington__unknown__ual__2025

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School: RCA
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Year: 2025
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Source: https://ualshowcase.arts.ac.uk/project/634333/cover

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# Project Description

Men Should: Dave

Harry Barrington

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Final work

Barrington's practice explores societal issues faced by gay men, shaped by personal experiences. His queer identity is central in his practice, focusing on gender, power and community dynamics. After moving to London, deeper involvement in queer spaces inspired work that invites reflection and awareness. Through audience engagement, Barrington aims to amplify overlooked societal issues and create understanding, bridging lived experience with critical, socially responsible design.

Barrington's practice explores societal issues faced by gay men, shaped by personal experiences. ...

College Chelsea College of Arts

Course BA (Hons) Product and Furniture Design

Graduation year 2025

Rigid ideals of masculinity continue to dominate social behaviour, shaping how men are expected to move, sit, and present themselves to meet their ideal. These performances, often unconscious, are reinforced through both cultural narratives and physical environments. From the way men are taught to take up space to how power is assigned around objects like chairs or tables. Even in queer spaces, traditional markers of masculinity are mimicked and celebrated, leaving little room for non-dominant expressions of manhood.

Men Should is a design proposal that explores these behaviours through a series of performative sculptural furniture pieces. The exaggerated forms are designed to demonstrate performative acts like manspreading, drawing attention to the absurdity and fragility of masculine performance. The work uses discomfort and reflection to open a conversation around how masculinity is embodied and judged, particularly for those whose identities fall outside heteronormative standards. By making these performances visible, Men Should encourages a more inclusive and critical understanding of gender expression.

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Rigid ideals of masculinity continue to dominate social behaviour, shaping how men are expected to move, sit, and present themselves to meet their ideal. These performances, often unconscious, are reinforced through both cultural narratives and physica...

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# Links

## Official page
- https://ualshowcase.arts.ac.uk/project/634333/cover

## External
- https://uk.linkedin.com/in/harry-barrington-345760264
- https://www.instagram.com/studio_harrybarrington
- http://harrybarrington.com/
- tel:07802214448
- mailto:Studioharrybarrington@gmail.com
- https://forms.arts.ac.uk/client-enquiry-form/
- https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fualshowcase.arts.ac.uk%2Fproject%2F634333%2Fcover&text=Men+Should%3A+Dave
- https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fualshowcase.arts.ac.uk%2Fproject%2F634333%2Fcover&media=https%3A%2F%2Fportfolio-tools.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2025%2F06%2F01100258%2Fshowcase-7.png&description=Men+Should%3A+Dave