Heavy/Lightweight Living

With ‘Heavy/Lightweight Living’, designer Charlie Humble-Thomas has used weight as a primary driver for designing and making objects. This might be through how weight is experienced, created or even perceived in the end result. Prioritising weight in the design process is not unusual, but is often reserved for higher performance categories such as bicycle components or in portable items such as a pack away waterproof jacket. But what about in homewares? It is a conversation that conjures uncomfortable truths where our emotional connection to materials are often at odds with environmental issues.

On a simple level, heavy objects cost more to ship, may be a superfluous use of material and are often more carbon intensive. However, weight can also communicate quality, practicality or luxury. Lightweight items offer their own conundrums. They may provide practical, efficient or even delightful experiences. They also may be prone to damage, or even feel throwaway to us. With an exploding global population, even modest savings on weight in mass production can have a monumental reduction in impact. Extreme cases can be eye opening; for example when we compare a solid marble table and one that is flat packed MDF. Here, weight, carbon impact and longevity are foregrounded. But looking deeper, we can ask what emotional responses they evoke in each of us, or ask what feels proportional for the use case. In ‘Heavy/Lightweight Living’, Charlie Humble-Thomas explores different ways to leverage weight; for example allowing movement or playing volume, scale or construction. Expect to see materials manipulated to create heavy and lightweight objects through stretching, forming, casting, spinning amongst other processes. Visitors are then invited to consider what feels appropriate for homeware items that we live alongside in our everyday life.