Food Storage without a Refrigerator

Today when talking to my grandmother, I was reminded of this video I saw about a year ago on Dezeen. This clip is from Milan 2010 Food and Design.  My favorite piece included is the food storage system, Shaping Traditional Oral Knowledge, by Japanese student Jihyun Ryou.  She combines sand with a little water to replace a refrigeration system needed for vegetables.  This is based on old family traditions, just as my grandmother told me her step-father used to store potatoes, carrots, and radishes in a dirt-filled cabinet when she was younger.  (I think I prefer the sand.)  This is a great way to eliminate those CFCs.

Scholtès Food and Design movies: Design Acadamy

To read and see more from this event, click here...

LEED Green Associate

Look out world. Yesterday I passed my LEED Green Associate exam.

Rib Cage

The Dutch firm Origin's Architects have designed the motion graphic design firm OneSize's office.  They created this wooden rib cage to separate the office into 3 different functioning meeting rooms: one open, one enclosed, and one dark enough for projections.

Bike Seat

In honor of last night's Twilight race here in Athens, this is Portuguese Rui Alves's Tour Chair.

No Waste Furniture

Swiss brothers Rainer and Tobias Kyburz have created the furniture line No Waste.  Each item is created from a single piece of FCS-certified plywood.  Every part of the sheet is used, creating no waste!  Buyers can choose the finish they want ahead of time.  Super efficient furniture!

This Post Is about a Toilet

Kohler has released the Numi toilet. Now after seeing this featured on Design-Milk, I was initially interested because I've been writing an art history paper on Marcel Duchamp's Fountain. He and other French visitors to America around World War I were particularly interested in the American bathroom. The convenience, the intimacy, the engineering, and the modernity of the porcelain toilet bowl was like nothing ever experienced.  It was so fascinating that Duchamp, Edward Weston, Diego Rivera, and even D.H. Lawrence devoted a portion of their art career to the toilet.

Now after saying all of that, this toilet is like nothing I have ever seen before. Features include a motion-activated seat and lid, a self cleaning wand and deodorizing vacuum in the bidet, a seat heater, feet warming, illuminated panels (for the ultimate visual experience), music, and a remote control for your potty.

So this is the ultimate toilet (at least for this year). I hope that more and more ultimate toilets begin to appear on the market. My favorite thing about the Kohler's site for the Numi is all the editorial fashion photographs. They are just stunning.

Haiti Mountain House by NC-office

Miami-based NC-office has developed a prototype for natural disaster relief housing, specifically to the needs in Haiti.  The houses' floor plans consist of five square, forming an L-shape to provide space for a garden.  The structures are composed of steel beam framing to withstand extreme weather conditions, and openings at the top and bottom of the house allow for views to the garden and heat to escape the interior.  There is no actual glazing in the home, but mosquito nets and panels allow for the safety from nature's outdoor conditions. A cistern collects water for occupant use, and a 1 KW solar panel system provides electricity to the house.

This is a great example of simple design that doesn't place stress on the environment.  I love the colors used, too. This house almost looks like a more tropical Eames case study to me.