What does "The Moment" look like?

- product design -

A thin metal frame in the dark with a small cloud of white smoke on its round platform. Text: The project "Moments" is the visualization of the moment in an object. By moment is meant the "now", that is, the "being" without temporal unity. It is therefore the opposite of a clock. It should take us away from our routine daily lives and, through its fascination, make us forget our schedule for a short moment. Rolf Scheuermann Stiftung logo.
Bring the moment closer to people. A vertical timeline with marks at minus 5, plus 5 and plus 15 minutes, with a soap bubble labeled "Now" in between. Text: But how can something so elusive be shaped? Time is linear, a unit used by society to structure and order. The "now", however, resists definition. It is intangible and therefore of limited use. Fleeting, light, fragile, simple, bright, neutral, sudden, unpredictable, unstable. On the basis of these characteristics, I use the soap bubble as a symbol for the moment.
User Interaction. A woman stands next to the object and looks at the soap bubble hanging below its spherical head; two small photos show the object in the dark, once with a glowing bubble and once with smoke spreading over the platform. Text: For me, the soap bubble is an ideal symbol for the moment. It appears suddenly, like every single moment in our lives, and will certainly not last forever. Holding on to it is pointless, as this would only destroy the moment of the soap bubble. The sensuality of an evolving soap bubble, the iridescent surface as it falls and the surprisingness as it bursts are the kind of fascination that gives us a brief moment of wonder. Observing this process is so overwhelming that it pushes our thinking brain into the background for a moment. This effect is enhanced by smoke, which produces an unexpected evaporation when the bubble bursts.
Design. Renderings of eight shape variants, labeled Shape ideation, and of the final object with the labels Technical "head", Metal frame and Soap bubble. Text: The allegory of "the mother" serves as inspiration for the design. She carries the moment within her. She is sensitive but stable. She protects the moment without taking away the freedom it needs to unfold. She provides for the moment. The mother remains in the background, although she is much bigger and stronger. She focuses on the moment. A mother is selfless. Clear. Uncomplicated. Even though she and the moment embody a unity, they are opposites. Through this allegory I got the idea of a thin metal construction as a "mother", which is designed to be very minimalistic and unobtrusive.
Implementation. Five workshop photos show a part being turned on a lathe, bent metal tubes clamped on a welding table, a wired evaporator, a tube forming a soap bubble and the frame in an aluminium truss with a laptop, next to technical drawings with dimensions and Arduino code. Text: Creating the soap bubble by itself was the big challenge in this project. A single smoke-filled soap bubble is generated through several electronically coordinated components, controlled by an Arduino. A rotating wiper soaks the tube in soapy water, while a membrane motor pushes air through it, forming a bubble at the end. An electric evaporator injects fog fluid into the bubble as it forms. The process is triggered by an ultrasonic sensor, which detects when someone stands within forty centimetres of the object for three seconds.
The finished object in the dark: a thin black metal frame with a round platform and a glowing white soap bubble hanging below the head.
Text: A big shout-out to Metallbau Böhm for their advice and support in building the model. Metallbau Böhm logo.
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