Save
A Dutch design practice has created an entirely transparent glass kitchen, where everything from the surfaces to the shelves, cupboards, taps and utensils are see-through – even the waste disposal system.
The idea behind Rotterdam-based MVRDV’s 'Infinity Kitchen', unveiled at the Venice Architecture Biennale this week, is this: if we can see every element of the food production process more clearly, we will be more efficient and better appreciate the food, and in turn develop healthier eating habits.
“Let’s say everything is clear, transparent, and clean; doesn’t that mean the only thing that’s colourful and visible is our food?” suggests MVRDV co-founder Winy Maas in the slightly hypnotic video at the bottom of the page. “Doesn’t it then imply that we’re encouraged to love the food, and that maybe it even becomes more healthy, or sexy?”
Photo: MVRDV
Maas sees the glass kitchen, on show until 30 September at the Università IUAV di Venezia Ca’tron, as “part of a wider dream ... an environment, a city that is more transparent, and therefore accessible.” The only things that aren’t transparent are the dishwasher – “not yet possible, but on my shopping list” – and the cutlery.
The installation is part of the Kitchen Home Project at the Biennale, which aims to explore the boundaries of our living environments. “Most of us cook in prefabricated kitchens ... composed of modules ... created by an immense kitchen industry,” says Maas, “but how can we still improve it? Can we update that?”
