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Process: the performance of matter by João Abreu Valente
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With Dutch Design Week 2012 drawing to a close this weekend, we select our top five graduation projects from prestigious design school Design Academy Eindhoven. Recognised as one of the top design institutions in the world, the school is a great place to spot emerging trends at their birthplace.
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Process: the performance of matter by João Abreu Valente
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In Process: the performance of matter, João Abreu Valente explores the idea that 'form follows process' should replace the design maxim 'form follows function'. Objects in the project are used to create further objects. In Teapot'set, an entire teaset is produced using just one mould, which is cast in its entirety to create the tea pot, and then in lesser and lesser amounts to produce each consecutive piece - until the saucer, which uses only the base of the mould.
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| Perfumetools by Jody Kocken |
Perfumetools, by Jody Kocken, is a set of wearable perfume dispensers that eradicate the need to apply scent directly to the skin. Kocken developed the series after discovering her own allergy to perfume. Each wearable piece attaches to a perfume bottle to absorb the scent, then diffuses it in a similar way to human skin.
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| Playing Food by Tomm Velthuis |
A number of students showed projects sparked by the impending crisis of unsustainable meat production and the climate change issues involved. Tomm Velthuis's Playing Food is a set of wooden blocks that together make up a toy farm - but a farm as it exists today, rather than a nostalgic view.
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| Playing Food by Tomm Velthuis |
Pigs are crowded together in cramped pens, felled trees line the outside of the factory, and acid rain - a result of the pigs' manure - is also handily included.
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| Fading Desk by Thijmen van der Steen |
Thijmen van der Steen's Fading Desk provides a clever and beautiful solution to the problem of the home office; namely, how can we draw a line between work and relaxation, and also create a pleasant atmosphere to work in? The desk's main feature is an ombre, semi-transparent screen surrounding the workspace, providing just the right level of privacy for the worker while keeping them a part of the rest of the room.
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| Humidifying Vase by Mingshuo Zhang |
The last project in our selection is the most immediately commercial. Mingshuo Zhang's Humidifying Vase combines the function of a humidifier with the beauty of a vase of freshly cut flowers. The vase keeps the flowers moisturised just as it keeps our air moisturised, and as the designer says, "it's also quite meditative to sit and watch the water droplets drip down the vase". For more humidifying design solutions, subscribers can read our report, Design for Well-being.
Watch out for our full coverage of Dutch Design Week 2012, including the top twenty graduation projects, live on WGSN-homebuildlife next week.