Abigail Ghent

Two final projects:

The Hands Playground

The project is a critical questioning of craft and making. The benefit of using our hands is recognised mentally and physically. Stemming from research found for my dissertation in which I came across articles and books discussing how using our hands can improve and lift our moods. As our third lockdown began, with the looming knowledge I would be sat in my room staring at walls, I gathered what I could, cardboard, tape, yarn; and started making. The project started with no planning or designing, the idea was to keep my hands busy, build my confidence in creating at a time of restriction. The traces and marks from the production have been left visible on the surface of the objects. Speed and the default character of each material shaped the language of the models. Creating the concept of sketching in space. The final collection developed from the initial models made during lockdown, changing the ephemeral materials to permanent objects, ready to go in people’s homes. They’re to encourage creativity, shine a light on the handmade touch, hopefully enticing people to grab the materials around them and learn that making is something everyone can do.

 

Grab Stool

We automatically interact with objects and spaces that we encounter. Observing and understanding these interactions enables us as designers to provide cues that people will understand, directing them towards ergonomic interaction with the object; picking it up becomes natural.

Grab is an upholstered stool with an indication of how it can be picked up and moved around the house. Developed from looking at how people interact with furniture in their homes and if there are details that are overt or covert. Focusing on taking away volume in the upholstery while not taking away from its comfort. Resulting in an upholstered stool with a pipe detail for your hand to follow. This gives permission for the user to pick up the stool and move it around.