Design Crack — May 21, 2007 — Unique
References: jimrokos & designcrack
Jim Rokos, a recent graduate from Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London, has come up with a number of products designed to expose personal relationships between couples, and their ability to cooperate. I've included images from a couple of the products above. The top product is called My Other Half. It's a wine glass with a tube that runs between the two stems. It's a product that helps reveal who is the real alcoholic in the house because the glasses have to be raised to the couples mouths simultaneously or the wine will spill all over the individual who was too slow to raise their glass. It's symbology is eerily prophetic. That is the one who drinks too much in the couple leaves the other one in the couple a mess without intentionally leaving him or her a mess. It's a pretty deep product for how simple the design is.
The Lower image shows Mr. Rokos' Til Death Do We Part. It's a pipe where a couple can share a cigarette together, but a cigarette can only be smoked if both individuals in the couple inhale together. Outside of the psychological game playing that looking into each other's eyes as you each smoke yourself to death might cause, I also see this product as an affective tool to stop smoking. Imagine making a game out of this product: One can only smoke if the other smokes. So, if couples are each trying to quit, then you would never be able to smoke except, probably, at the occasional party. Certainly, smoking levels would go down at both ends of a couple: or the couple would be at each other's throat.
The Lower image shows Mr. Rokos' Til Death Do We Part. It's a pipe where a couple can share a cigarette together, but a cigarette can only be smoked if both individuals in the couple inhale together. Outside of the psychological game playing that looking into each other's eyes as you each smoke yourself to death might cause, I also see this product as an affective tool to stop smoking. Imagine making a game out of this product: One can only smoke if the other smokes. So, if couples are each trying to quit, then you would never be able to smoke except, probably, at the occasional party. Certainly, smoking levels would go down at both ends of a couple: or the couple would be at each other's throat.
Trend Themes
1. Relationship Testing Products - Creating products that reveal personal relationships and test couples' ability to cooperate.
2. Synchronized Drinking - Developing products that require couples to raise their glasses simultaneously, exposing who drinks more in the relationship.
3. Joint Smoking Products - Designing products that allow couples to smoke together, promoting communication and potentially aiding smoking cessation efforts.
Industry Implications
1. Product Design - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Creating innovative relationship testing products that offer unique experiences and insights into couples' dynamics.
2. Hospitality - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Introducing synchronized drinking experiences in bars and restaurants, enhancing social interactions and promoting equality in alcohol consumption.
3. Health and Wellness - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Developing joint smoking products as tools for couples who want to quit smoking together, fostering mutual support and accountability.
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