efeito D: a social action design project

zzzidt-object by richard hutten image © designboom

efeito D is a new brand of design articles, which have been influenced by people who are different. just as slight genetic alterations create people who are different, a small alteration in the code of the word ‘defect’ delivers a new, positive and inspiring materialization. thus defect becomes efeito D (D-effect).

assuming design as a tool capable of reproducing this distinction, efeito D challenges designers to develop objects that incorporate in their genetic code, a difference which renders them desirable to consumers.

efeito D is a project coordinated by BBDO portugla and financed by the calouste gulbenkian foundation, co-produced with experimentadesign lisboa. the objective of the project is to provide awareness to individuals with down syndrome and create a new source of income which can help support the activities of diferenças – a children’s development centre that helps and supports children with cognitive and development problems.

detail of the bubbled mutation image © designboom

hutten’s original zzidt-object produced with a mutation. there is some kind of blob growing out of it. the idea can be applied to other objects which are made with rotation molding, this object seen as a way of thinking, not a final design. to create the mutation, hutten the zzzidt-object locally and then blew it up.

rhino chair by richard hutten image © designboom

originally the rhino-chair was made in a hard plastic, but here, hutten has produced it in a soft material. following the same idea as with zzzidt-object, hutten blew up the rhino chair so that it has become a kind of cuddling object which you can lie, sit or play on. because of the production and material process, the whole object shifted, but the main features of the original chair remain.

vases with roots by fernando brizio image © designboom

vases normally contain the roots within. here instead, the roots become visible, resulting in a visually confusing object.

inside the vases with roots image © designboom

dolly chair by henrique ralheta image © designboom

the dolly chair reflects constant change in both objects and the body itself. the sense of imperfection leads to the action of ‘pro-tuning’ furniture. it acts as a prototype chair at home.

the dolly chair bound to (im)perfection image © deignboom

il va tomber shelves by henrique ralheta image © designboom

these shelves incorporate a small defect which make it appear as if it is falling. the shelves are to be used for books, with a slight notion of chaos, expressive of a social state – because utilitarian objects may also be chaotic.

the ‘helpy’ table by henrique ralheta image © desginboom

the table is formed through the connection between two interdependent elements, creating a strange, tender and fragile harmony.

clypx by alexandre viana image © designboom

clypx is meant to portray chromosome ‘X’ and ‘Y’ which is important in geneteics, and use it in a different way, through useful objects like paper clips.

an overview of the exhibition which was held at the calouste gulbenkian foundation image © designboom