slow water at london design festival

rca: slow water

21 september – 4 october

lower galleries, rca, kensington gore, london

slow water is the rca’s first show where the college’s students have come together to create a single-issue
exhibition dedicated to exploring sustainability. the 16 design concepts on display are responses to the open
brief ‘to slow water between the sky and the sea’, a call to arms for products that satisfy consumer needs
with a socially responsible approach. here is a selection of designboom’s pictures from the exhibition.

alon meron, soap sink meron describes our houses as ‘hydrophobic marvels of steel, ceramics and plastics’ with hundreds of litres of water invisibly flowing through a network of pipes each day, leaving no trace of its existence. his soap sink brings the action of water that shapes the natural, external environment that surrounds us, erosion, into our interior space.

jochem faudet, grow your own grow your own aims to provide an affordable and effortless alternative to existing greenhouses, allowing users to grow their own plants and vegetables. it collects rainwater from its surfaces which is then stored and slowly distributed to the plants as needed.

thomas wagner, growing water wagner’s concept is an assembly of stackable, portable waterbutts that collect water from a house’s drainage system to be later used as required. the water flows from one container to the next, filling all in the stack, and shows that sustainability can be both beautiful and environmentally responsible.

freddie yauner and gregor timlin, rain water collection the rain water collection is a series of garden furniture that addresses the problem of water consumption in the garden, making the task of rainwater collection one of enjoyment that works in harmony with the environment. objects commonly found in the garden gain new functions: a parasol becomes a rainwater collector or hose pipe, a garden chair is now also a large capacity, rainwater storage container.

yasuko bell, a piece of shower ‘adult nappy’ (left) is a garment that can absorb up to one litre of water. it can then be either heated in a microwave or cooled in a fridge and worn to give a ‘jelly-bath’ like experience using cellulose pads, as an alternative to ‘refreshing’ quick showers that consume much more water. ‘moisture catcher’ raises the awareness of un-utilized water resources absorbing moisture from the air and then worn to provide a ‘steam sauna experience’

tithi kutchamuch, my sky, my water, my garden (left) a series of eco-friendly objects consisting of a low garden table that collects rainwater in its base to be used for watering plants and flowers, and a bird feeder/bath which collects water from the top and channels it to the bird bath below jordi canudas, the rain catcher (right) the rain catcher is hung outside your house and attached to the rainwater drainage system to collect waste water to be used later. by being hung the rain catcher saves floor space and negates the need for an energy consuming pump by using the force of gravity.

space demonstrating the development of the products and water consumption information (left).
illustrations from catherine greene’s ‘inside it’s raining’ project which explores the integration of rain into the
workplace.