London-based Studio Ayaskan, made up of twin sisters Begum and Bike Ayaskan, has designed an immersive installation for its graduation project at the Royal College of Art.
Flow is an indoor ecosystem that aims to capture the sensory experience of being in nature within an indoor environment. The twin designers have reinterpreted the traditional hydroponics systems, so that a pump circulates the water allowing it to cascade down in a spiral, like a waterfall.
Flow resembles a chandelier, and its floating garden creates a small immersive world. The twin design team describe it as a place “where you can step out of the city and reconnect with nature”.
It is a modular design and, in terms of form and landscaping, can be scaled up or down in order to fit the space it resides, from big atrium centrepieces to smaller domestic chandeliers. Flow is suitable for flowers, herbs and food.
Flow aims to go beyond boundaries of rigid space, transforming people’s perception of interior versus outdoor environments. It uses hydroponic technology to grow soil-less plants, which creates a sensory water feature that is both relaxing and meditative.
“We wanted to create this piece in order to bring nature back into the city. Modern cities are smothering us – air pollution, noise pollution, overcrowding; we are surrounded by urban chaos,” say Begum and Bike.
Begum and Bike have also designed Growth, a pot that uses origami-based geometry to transform and grow with a plant, as the plant itself unfolds over time.
