Surviving the Suburb: The Climate Machine
‘This installation explores the urban dwelling of the future. Described as ‘an optimistic research machine’, it presents possibilities for day-to-day city life transformed by climate change and continuing globalisation. The elements exhibited include adaptations of familiar domestic objects like a ’shitake’ kitchen sink with mushroom bed beneath, or other more speculative ‘white goods’ of the future such as an urban chicken house. It is not climate change itself but how society reacts that is researched here: what effect will it have on how we live, on our urban structures and domestic space? ‘
‘description taken from RIBA website Tom Matton describes his practice as situated ’somewhere between object-design, society-shape, ecological city planning and artist-activism’ exploring ‘the small Utopias and interruptions of daily life’ and ‘connections between traditional countryside living and contemporary mega-city lifestyle.’ ‘
This installation left me somewhat underwhelmed; possibly due to a combination of insufficient information and location (the exhibit made me feel out of place almost an intruder and with half the info and explaination at floor level it was . . . ackward). However, there was a very likeable playful element to the designs.
Tags: design
