Ordinary objects, eccentric eyes
Brief | Eccentricity MD
Project Leader | Giulio Iacchetti
Project Assistant | Camilo Ayala
Group Members | Aiko Chino, Michelle Man, Chieh Mii
Idea | Problem Setting | Context
The main idea of this project is to see ordinary objects through eccentric eyes. Through normal eyes, people usually see one fixed solution to solve everyday problems, but it is ‘excentric’ to discover new ways to solve them. Therefore, the aim of this project is to make your thinking eccentric, to discover new ways to use ordinary household objects, and in turn, finding an excentric solution to an existing problem.
The first object is the ‘toaster’. Nowadays, a toaster is seen as an ordinary object every household should have. The problem that the toaster helps to solve is making the bread hot and crispy on the surface. Various technologies have been added to the modern toaster seen on the market, but the usage behaviour still remains the same i.e. insert the bread into the slot and wait for it to be ready. The main disadvantage of the toaster is that it is difficult to clean the insides because of the complex wiring, only breadcrumbs (or additional ingredients such as butter) that fall onto the bottom tray can be removed. Although convenient, a toaster can also be considered as something dirty. This project explores another alternative to make the bread hot and crispy using normal irons.
The second object is the ‘hairdryer’. The problem that the hairdryer helps to address is drying someone’s hair using hot air. This conventional behaviour usually consumes a lot of time and electricity, and creates noise pollution for both the user and people nearby. Therefore, this project explores an alternative solution to drying hair, using a lamp.
Most importantly, the problem that this project attempts to solve is not only the problem with existing objects, but the problem of sticking to conventionality. People usually see one way of using one object, but through ‘eccentric eyes’, there are many other possibilities.
What is it?
The word ‘excentric’ can be interpreted in various ways. Instead of creating excentric products, this project focuses on excentric thinking to stimulate new behaviours.
People always use conventional methods and objects to solve everyday problems. However, there are so many other ways to achieve the same result. The exploration of ‘eccentricity’ is through the discovery of eccentric ways to solve existing problems by use of ordinary objects. Therefore, this project aims to look at ordinary objects and what they can do through ‘eccentric eyes’.
How it works?
The Iron Toaster consists of a stand for 2 irons, with the metal plates facing each other. The bread is held in between these two metal plates by a small indent in the middle of the stand. Instead of using the heat from the wiring in the toaster to heat the bread, the heat from the iron plate is used instead.
The Lamp Hairdryer makes use of the normal floor lamp with an adjustable lampshade and an infrared light bulb. It can be adjusted to point upwards towards the ceiling, or downwards to dry the hair. The heat from the red light bulb helps to dry the hair faster when the user sits underneath, with the lampshade facing down.
Value & Potential
The value of this project is to break away from the norm, and stimulate people to look at ordinary objects in a new light. It becomes clearer that many ordinary objects can be re-used to solve another problem, rather than having one purpose they were initially created for.
The simplicity of the designs proposed is to accentuate the concept. However, in the future, modifications can be done to ordinary objects in order to make them function better, without having to acquire so many products.
-
Related Projects
