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(video below) During our ShowLTU CoAD 2026 Industry and Alumni Reception, Kai-Uwe Bergmann will speak on MATERIALISM — We seek to reclaim the term materialism—not as a symbol of empty consumerism, but as a meaningful practice: shaping our future through form and matter. For most of our history, life adapted to the material world around us. That changed the moment we discovered tools, technology, and architecture. With them, we gained the power to shape the material world in service of the life we wanted to lead. Human history can be read as a story told through materials—each breakthrough marking a new chapter in our evolution.
We named entire eras after the substances we learned to master: the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age, the Silicon Age. Our ability to manipulate matter has been one of the most powerful forces driving civilization forward. In this spirit, we invite you on an odyssey through the material world, as seen through the works of BIG—from the permanence of solid rock to the invisible flow of electrons.