Daniel van der Noon
"When creating products from natural materials, we are taking from resources that are finite, and whose extraction and use have an impact on the planet. This comes with a level of responsibility as a designer.
In 50 years time, we envisage the ability to 3D print what are now rare, desirable and beautiful natural materials like marble, minerals and rosewood. This technology would be readily available, following the nascent movement of large corporations like Tesla making their intellectual property public to allow others to develop them for the benefit of mankind as a whole.
This would allow for a democratization of materiality, as well as the creation of neo-natural materials without any detriment the environment. Something like this would present a new set of boundaries for designers, and would change the way we think about our surroundings.
And while we're at it, these neo-natural materials could be bio-renewable or degradable on demand. Now, wouldn't that be something?" -- Campbell Rey
In 50 years time, we envisage the ability to 3D print what are now rare, desirable and beautiful natural materials like marble, minerals and rosewood. This technology would be readily available, following the nascent movement of large corporations like Tesla making their intellectual property public to allow others to develop them for the benefit of mankind as a whole.
This would allow for a democratization of materiality, as well as the creation of neo-natural materials without any detriment the environment. Something like this would present a new set of boundaries for designers, and would change the way we think about our surroundings.
And while we're at it, these neo-natural materials could be bio-renewable or degradable on demand. Now, wouldn't that be something?" -- Campbell Rey
Daniel van der Noon
"While current health-related concerns focus primarily on the body and physical fitness, I think there is a growing need for architecture, for buildings, to actively promote human well-being on physical, social and psychological levels.
I imagine that, in the future, there will be a need for a device, a kind of communicative thermometer, that supplies us with continuous information about health-related conditions in the built environment. It will measure and inform us about such things as air pollution, noise, daylight, fresh air and temperature levels -- information based on ensuring safety and comfort in buildings.
It will not only inform us about conditions, but also warn of dangers and, in so doing, heighten our awareness of how our immediate environment is affecting us. I envisage this as a sensor system that both collects information and communicates it through whatever personal communication technology we're using in 50 years.
Today this would be communicated through an app, but who knows? In the future we may be receiving information directly to our senses via implants." -- Ben van Berkel
I imagine that, in the future, there will be a need for a device, a kind of communicative thermometer, that supplies us with continuous information about health-related conditions in the built environment. It will measure and inform us about such things as air pollution, noise, daylight, fresh air and temperature levels -- information based on ensuring safety and comfort in buildings.
It will not only inform us about conditions, but also warn of dangers and, in so doing, heighten our awareness of how our immediate environment is affecting us. I envisage this as a sensor system that both collects information and communicates it through whatever personal communication technology we're using in 50 years.
Today this would be communicated through an app, but who knows? In the future we may be receiving information directly to our senses via implants." -- Ben van Berkel
Daniel van der Noon
"Nature becomes as valuable as art. Seed banks will become the new art museum; extinct plants will become as priceless as Renaissance paintings." -- Faye Toogood
Daniel van der Noon
"Fifty years from now, we will be living in a robot and artificial intelligence economy. A large percentage of humans will be receiving a universal income made possible by the productivity achieved by technology.
Being on universal income will free us from the need to work for survival, and instead we will choose the pursuits that are personally most fulfilling. Continuing education will be attainable to all, leading people to follow their dreams and visions while contributing to a better world.
Scientific research will thrive as more people see it as an important endeavor for humankind. Personal philanthropy and dedication to the betterment of the world and its people will be a life calling for many. Art and creativity will be undertaken en masse in a world where culture and its expression have become an everyday concern." -- Yves Behar
Being on universal income will free us from the need to work for survival, and instead we will choose the pursuits that are personally most fulfilling. Continuing education will be attainable to all, leading people to follow their dreams and visions while contributing to a better world.
Scientific research will thrive as more people see it as an important endeavor for humankind. Personal philanthropy and dedication to the betterment of the world and its people will be a life calling for many. Art and creativity will be undertaken en masse in a world where culture and its expression have become an everyday concern." -- Yves Behar
Daniel van der Noon
"The only reality I can imagine is that global warming will be having a serious impact on humanity at this time.
Some years ago I was asked to write about the world in 2028, and I came to the conclusion that the sun is god and without its nourishing support, there would be no life on Earth.
My focus then was on alternatives to fossil fuels -- such as solar and wind -- and merging these new technologies into an off-grid home that was as self-sufficient as possible, opening up the entire landscape of our beautiful Earth to a new form of harmonic symbiosis in living. This new form of nomadic housing took the shape of Generator House, an unrealized project I developed for Swarovski.
People talk about the future of civilization being in cities, but I believe that the advent of the internet, knowledge-sharing and social networking allow us to pursue a more remote life with clean air, views of nature, and silence. We could have a minimal impact on the environment while living remotely within nature." -- Ross Lovegrove
Some years ago I was asked to write about the world in 2028, and I came to the conclusion that the sun is god and without its nourishing support, there would be no life on Earth.
My focus then was on alternatives to fossil fuels -- such as solar and wind -- and merging these new technologies into an off-grid home that was as self-sufficient as possible, opening up the entire landscape of our beautiful Earth to a new form of harmonic symbiosis in living. This new form of nomadic housing took the shape of Generator House, an unrealized project I developed for Swarovski.
People talk about the future of civilization being in cities, but I believe that the advent of the internet, knowledge-sharing and social networking allow us to pursue a more remote life with clean air, views of nature, and silence. We could have a minimal impact on the environment while living remotely within nature." -- Ross Lovegrove
Daniel van der Noon
"I believe that, as resources become scarcer and more expensive, the object of the future will be an existing object that has been repaired or hacked to fit current demands so that fewer resources are used to produce it.
Our current obsession with the new will have to change. Sweden is already offering tax breaks to its citizens for repairing objects ranging from bicycles to washing machines." -- Philippe Malouin
Our current obsession with the new will have to change. Sweden is already offering tax breaks to its citizens for repairing objects ranging from bicycles to washing machines." -- Philippe Malouin
Daniel van der Noon
"I wanted to contemplate a design object that everyone should have at home in 50 years. When I think about the current state of the world socio-politically, environmentally, and emotionally, with so much daily stresses, I realize that now -- and even more so in the future -- we all need a way to take a moment for ourselves.
I'm imagining a place where we could detox and relax, breathe fresh air and get cleansed. Particularly, I'm thinking of a space with scientifically controlled oxygen levels, airborne nutrients, comforting sounds and light, which allows us to rest. I would call it the Recharger Capsule, and it would be aimed at helping us all find a balance between body and spirit." -- Patrizia Moroso
I'm imagining a place where we could detox and relax, breathe fresh air and get cleansed. Particularly, I'm thinking of a space with scientifically controlled oxygen levels, airborne nutrients, comforting sounds and light, which allows us to rest. I would call it the Recharger Capsule, and it would be aimed at helping us all find a balance between body and spirit." -- Patrizia Moroso
Daniel van der Noon
"In 50 years, whether we like it or not, there will have been WWIII. We have produced a handful of works that reference this fate, several of which we have yet to produce for fear it would be like a bad omen summoning the apocalypse." -- Studio Job
Daniel van der Noon
"I envision two tendencies in the future. The first is that the world will lean towards personalized and unique products that express an individual's traits and characteristics. An example of this would be that, in 100 years, we will be able to have personalized cars that reflect or look like the driver so we can easily identify who the person is just by looking at the car.
The second is that phones -- all kinds of phones -- will be substituted with telepathy, the ability to communicate through one's mind." -- Gaetano Pesce
The second is that phones -- all kinds of phones -- will be substituted with telepathy, the ability to communicate through one's mind." -- Gaetano Pesce
CNN
—
Design Miami is underway in the Sunshine State, bringing with it not only the most coveted collectible furniture and objects, but also the glitterati of the design circuit (not to mention the art crowd in town for Art Basel.)
With design on everyone’s mind, CNN Style seized the moment to chat up some of today’s leading design thinkers, makers, movers and shakers, asking them to “imagine a product that reflects the way the world will have changed 50 years from now.”
From Yves Behar’s optimistic forecast of an idyllic robot economy, to Studio Job’s apocalyptic projection of global gloom and doom, we received predictions as wide-ranging as the practices we consulted.
See more
To illustrate these visions, we asked Copenhagen-based artist Daniel van der Noon to put pen to paper and interpret each designer’s view of the world, a few decades down the line.
Check out the gallery above to see how top designers envisage the future.