A magic carpet, an plate that will never let your ice cream go cold, a Lego toy train that explains the concepts of physics, a portable foot spa for two and tons more.
If you’d like to check out some whacky product design and out-of-the-box thinking, then drop into the Inspiring IDE(A) exhibition, currently on in the central hall of the Industrial Design faculty.
The exhibition is an annual showcase of the projects BSc and MSc students have been working on through the year. The idea is to give people an overview of the educational programme of the faculty and the exhibition has been curated accordingly.
Works are categorised according to module and explanations have been put up in Dutch and English. Some of the projects have also been displayed with the notes and drawings of the preparatory stage. Designs, such as the reverse Segway (that looks a little bit like a magic flying carpet), also have small TV screens so visitors can watch some demos.
One interesting project is a magazine called Senior Life 2020. Set in the year 2020, the magazine was designed as part of a project to understand the needs of senior citizens and create a product that appeals to them. “A lot of people also made digital magazine apps, but I chose to create a more traditional one,” says Maruka Maas, a second year BSc student. In order to create a sense of the future, the magazine not only has anachronistic articles, even the advertisements are for futuristic gadgets. “A lot of the ads are for things that are not on the market but will be in future,” she says.
Slightly further away is a display of curious looking wooden toys. “They are supposed to be educational toys that can be used on a playground of a primary school to help children understand mechanics and how things work,” says Kristiina Ranta, also a BSc student. Ranta’s project – the Rolling Music Machine – is part of this set, and explains the effects of spinning.
The exhibition is through May 30th in the central hall of the Industrial Design faculty.

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