Hasta La Ideas

by Gavin Lucas Comprised of the combined talents of Craig Redman and Karl Maier, transatlantic illustration and design duo Craig & Karl has collaborated with South Korean luxury leather goods…

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Adornments that deploy robotic wings when someone gets too close or change colour when the wearer is embarrassed have been designed for introverts by Goldsmiths graduate Lilian Hipolyte Mushi.

“Layers we wear are the first boundary into our personal space,” says Lilian Hipolyte Mushi. “These structures allow introverts to gradually change their personal temperament continuum.”

When someone comes within just over 80 centimetres of the wearer of a dress covered with distance sensors, wooden arms shoot out into a fan from the back to keep people at arms length.

A pleated hood covered in thermochromic pigments gradually changes colour with fluctuations in body heat, which can occur when the wearer is shy or embarrassed.

The pleated sleeves of another garment are embedded with Nitinol wire, a shape-memory alloy that becomes rigid when heated. This expands the arms to twice the size and then collapses them back when cool, again highlighting changes in body temperature.

“This project explores how introverts use isolation as a mechanism for social recharge as well as a way to navigate social situations,” says the Goldsmiths graduate. “Furthermore, it is an exploration into how the psychology of introverts can be used in our societies and begs to find new ways to help people with social problems such as isolation and loneliness.”

An Introvert’s Transformation to Extroversion was on display at part one of the New Designers graduate exhibition in London, which ran from 27 to 29 June. Part two of the event takes place from 3 to 6 July.

Previously we’ve featured dresses that become see-through when the wearer’s heart rate increases and garments that move and light up when someone stares at them, which are both included in our digital fashion archive.

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This project explores how introverts use isolation as a mechanism for social recharge as well as a way to navigate social situations. Furthermore, it is an exploration into how the psychology of introverts can be used in our societies and begging to find new ways to help people with social problems such as isolation and loneliness.

“Yes I am an introvert, no I am not shy”.

These introverts have the ability to transform into extroverts in social situations by extending the boundaries of their introversion. Their battleground is the politics of personal space versus public space boundaries.

They have devised ways to find a balance between blending in and standing out, by using engineered structures to aid their transformation, whilst protecting their social identities in a world designed for extroverts.

Layers we wear are the first boundary into our personal space; these structures allow introverts a gradual change on their personal temperament continuum.

They aim to spread the power of introverts by sparking conversation amongst their spectators who admire them; and question the choices we make, of presenting and re-presenting ourselves.

Proxemics Protector

Distance sensor controls the space around this introvert’s body, deploying robotic inverted wings when a spectator is within 80.429cm of their proxemics.

Space Inflator

Nitinol Memory wire in the garment’s arms, allows this introvert’s body form to change state by inflating the arm structure when they are extroverted and collapsing when introverted.

Temperament Transformer

Thermal Chromic colour pigments display the gradual transformation process of this introvert by changing colour as they transform back and forth on the Introvert – Extrovert continuum.

The post An Introvert’s Transformation to Extroversion
by Lilian Hipolyte Mushi appeared first on Dezeen.

La Rainbow Room s’inspire d’un salon traditionnel Afrikaan durant la finale la coupe du monde de Rugby de 1995, symbole de virilité par excellence. Pierre Le Riche y associe les couleurs du Rainbow Flag, proposant ainsi un questionnement sur les rapports à l’homosexualité. Une installation engagée et colorée à découvrir.

Royal College of Art graduate Jeongwon Ji has made her own bioplastic from crab shells.

Aiming to make a more tactile casing for electronic products, Jeongwon Ji extracted a derivatine of glucose called chitin from crustaceans and developed her own plastic from it by trial and error in the workshop.

The resulting material, which she calls Crustic, combines the chitin with water and small amount of glycerin.

“The Chinese mitten crab from Asia is one of the most invasive species and they are taking over the rivers in the UK,” Jeongwon Ji told Dezeen. “The crabs are unwanted here so I wanted to work out what we can do with them as a resource instead.”

The water-based mixture takes much longer to cure than conventional plastics but the ingredients are completely non-toxic, she explained. “Although production time is longer, this nontoxic process can improve the work life of those who manufacture our electronics.”

In the Design Products department of the Royal College of Art graduate show last week, the designer presented her material samples and experiments alongside conceptual electronic projects with casings made of Crustic, including an alarm clock, humidifier, computer trackpad, torch and WiFi router.

Although they were all made in accurate geometric wooden moulds, the material becomes rough and distorts as it cures, resulting in tactile and organic forms.

“I wanted to challenge the archetypes of electronic products by using tactile surfaces and making forms that look like they are made of something different, something natural,” she said.

A couple of months ago we featured a pavilion based on the structure of chitin in a lobster’s shell and in 2011 Italian designers Formafantasma presented a range of vessels made from natural polymers they’d cooked up themselves.

Other projects presented at Show RCA included paper-pulp helmets for cycle-hire schemes and living food that wriggles around on the plate.

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Here’s some more information from Jeongwon Ji:

BioElectric

BioElectric challenges the archetypes of electronics through material exploration. Industrial processes have streamlined manufactured products, but what if we allow new materials to be expressive and tactile? Like many of today’s electronic components, the Chinese Mitten Crab comes from Asia. This species invades our rivers, and is an unwanted, local resource.

I extracted Chitin polymers from crushed crab shells, and perfecting chemical-free “slow production” methods to make bio-plastics for the casings of electronic products. Although production time is longer, this nontoxic process can improve the work life of those who manufacture our electronics.

Crustic

Crustic is a crustacean-based biocompatible plastic that Jeongwon Ji developed for her BioElectric project to enhance tactile pleasure.

The production time of Crustic is longer because the use of water instead of artificial chemicals. Crustic is made out of chitin derived from crab shells and water, combining with a small amount of red agile and glycerin.

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Jeongwon Ji appeared first on Dezeen.

Product news: French designer Mathieu Lehanneur has created a glass with a stem that holds exactly one measure of alcohol for liqueur brand Ricard.

Lehanneur designed the glassware primarily for bars and restaurants to enable the precise amount of Ricard‘s anise-flavoured spirits to be poured.

The flared stem prevents ice cubes from distorting the measurement and forming crystals that detract from the taste while permanently sitting in the liqueur.

A carafe for mixers has a similar spout to the glass stem and a larger base with the same conical shape.

Mathieu Lehanneur has completed a few projects recently, such as the interior of a cafe in Paris that serves food in edible packaging and a chandelier that looks like illuminated lengths of rope.

One of our most popular stories ever features a range of glasses each designed with one of the seven deadly sins in mind.

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Photos are by Véronique Huyghe.

More information from the designer follows:

Mathieu Lehanneur designs the new Ricard carafe and glass

Ricard entrusted Mathieu Lehanneur with the role of redesigning its carafe and glass set to equip bars, restaurants and clubs. The tasting ritual, a real institution, has been perfected by a complete revision of the codes and features by the French designer. The stem of the glass contains the correct measure of Ricard, an end therefore to incorrect measures. Then, the flared shape of the stem does not allow ice cubes from entering, a small detail that prevents direct contact between the ice and the Ricard and therefore the formation of solidified anise essential oil flakes, that spoil the taste buds of purists!

A design feature that satisfies lovers and also guides enthusiasts who have the tendency to put the ice-cubes in the glass first of all, making a precise measure impossible. “With the Ricard teams we looked at reintroducing the preparation ritual to the very core of the tasting. I wanted to use the alchemy of the perfect measure but make it intuitive, obvious. The glass is primarily responsible for all that. As a result, whatever the order between ice-cubes and Ricard, you can be sure of having the right balance.

A new set that perfectly illustrates the modernist axiom “form follows function” with an innovative design, generous as well as fresh and functional. A big challenge to put into practice for this subject that Mathieu Lehanneur accepts with his usual talent for surprises and surpassing constraints in terms of style.

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for Ricard appeared first on Dezeen.