Concrete Air

Developed in 2014, Concrete Air is a central piece of the FOUNDATIONS collection and serves as the studio’s "Environment Foundation." Created as part of the Bastardism Master’s thesis at the Design Academy Eindhoven, this functional sculpture explores the origins of climate control and air purification. The project challenges the high-tech, plastic-heavy nature of modern appliances by proposing a monumental, low-tech alternative that relies on the thermal and physical properties of raw matter.

The conceptual core of Concrete Air lies in the imitation of natural geological processes. The design team conceived the object as a "huge sponge-like stone" designed to act as a domestic lung. By looking at how mountain labyrinths naturally cool and filter air, the studio sought to re-materialize this environmental phenomenon into a compact, yet massive, domestic unit. It is an exploration of "spatial mechanics," where the architecture of the object itself performs the work typically assigned to complex electronic machinery.

Technically, the installation consists of a 400kg concrete block riddled with approximately 500 internal caves and tunnels of varying sizes. The studio integrated two industrial ventilators—one at the top and one at the bottom—positioned to blow against each other. This configuration creates a specific pressure differential that generates a sucking movement of air particles. As the air is forced through the labyrinthine "caves," it comes into direct contact with the cold mass of the concrete, which naturally lowers its temperature. Furthermore, the solid particles and pollutants from the air become trapped within the labyrinth's walls, acting as a natural filter. To enhance its performance, the caves can be filled with water to humidify the air as it passes through.

Developed with the kind support of Weber Beamix, Concrete Air demonstrates the studio’s ability to find "active" potential in seemingly static materials. By merging raw concrete with industrial fans, the design team created a "bastard" appliance that is as much a piece of infrastructure as it is a functional object. It remains a definitive example of the studio’s commitment to radical material honesty, proving that the most fundamental solutions to our environmental comfort can be found in the weight and geometry of the earth itself.