Paper+ (the potential of paper in designing electronic objects)

Category: Interior

Paper is a material woven into everyday life, so much so that we stop to notice it. We take it for granted, and its ubiquity in everyday life, in my opinion, is making it adaptable. The project aims to explore the potential of using paper in device design. The work is oriented toward an experiment based on following the nature of paper and examining how they can enrich electronic objects. Paper has the potential to become a material that humanizes electronics. Because of its huge historical and cultural impact it can melt electronic objects in their surroundings, and reduces the distance between the user and the device - creating objects that feel genuinely close to the human. The process of designing was based on a series of experiments and observation of the material. I have taken the properties of paper, which often are unnoticed, as design tools, trying to show its potential. The three objects I designed - a speaker, a lamp, and a clock - attempt to answer the question of whether electronics can be brought closer to humans. I design all of them in a closed cycle so that they can be disassembled, repaired, or reconfigured. From an environmental perspective, the project aims to reduce the product's carbon footprint by using paper as an alternative to the plastic cases of devices available on the market. I believe that the material from which an object is made influences how we feel about it and whether we want to surround ourselves with it. Paper, with its organic nature and cultural roots, seems a good choice in an age when technology touches every aspect of life, yet it often remains cold. Using paper as a material in electronic devices resulted in objects that surprise, evoke emotions, and can be beautiful and fully functional. What I consider the greatest value of this work is not just the finished objects themselves, but the new, open quality they establish.

Download PDF 1