Jan Čtvrtník: Droog Aalto

(jiří macek) While he was redesigning the legendary Savoy vase by Alvar Aalto in an elegant way, Jan Čtvrtník demonstrated the way climatic conditions change, ultimately leading him to win the Droog Design Climate Competition. Congratulations!

“Climatic changes are usually depicted and explained by means of graphs, numbers, and mathematical models. It is also better to show the original state of objects to demonstrate in a comprehensible way what kind of changes our planet is going through. By comparing them, it will be possible to see what impact humankind has had on the climate,” says Jan Čtvrtník, explaining his train of thought.
He continues, “Alvar Aalto designed the collection of vases in 1937. Nobody knows what his inspiration was for its unconventional shape. The manufacturer of the vases – the Finnish company iittala – says on its website that Aalto’s father was a cartographer. So Aalto may have been inspired by the shape of Finnish nature, its lakes, meadows, and forests.”
Jan Čtvrtník followed the track of the shape of the Savoy vase, materialized the lake, and then reduced the amount of water according to how the earth keeps losing it. The difference between the contour of the lake in 1937 when Aalto designed the vase and its potential contour in 2007 gave shape to the bowl by Čtvrtník, who also played with the meaning of the word “Droog” (dry) in its title - Droog Aalto.
“Droog Aalto is a vase whose outer shape corresponds to the vase by Alvar Aalto. The outer shape serves as a reference point that shows water level in the lake in 1937. The inner shape is redesigned according to the level in 2007 when the lake was partially dried up. The thickness of the vase should serve as a symbolical memento of the impact humankind has on the climate of our planet.”
It is a beautiful story, a beautiful idea, and a great design…

The winner of the Droog Design Climate Competition was selected by visitors to www.droogdesign.nl. 32% voted for Droog Aalto. I would have voted for it as well.

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