2020. What. A. Year. Unprecedented – that’s the word used over and over again to describe it. Along with challenging, tragic, destabilising… But also lifechanging. Absolutely abnormal… But also heralding a New Normal.
As the year comes to a close, it’s a chance to look back and revisit some of the key ideas, creations and innovations that carried us through. So, from inclusive plasters, to 3D printed vitamins, to Van Gogh drive-ins, green currency and all the madness of the pandemic, here are our favourite dozen, the top twelve things that made us say “That’s Interesting” in the studio (and at home!!) this year.
Every little helps… Diversity
Something so simple, and yet it has taken forever to happen. This week, Tesco launched a new plaster range that finally goes beyond the standard peachy hue to fit different skin tones, from light to medium to dark. The idea was prompted by a viral Tweet, where a dark-skinned man describes his emotional response to finally finding a plaster that matched his skin. One small step for Tesco, one giant leap for diversity!
Heal the world here
Vitamin 3D
UK vitamin company Nourished is leading the world of Nutrition down a new path – 3D printed multivitamins. They can be tailored perfectly to your dietary requirements to supercharge your wellbeing and come in the form of a tasty gelatine-free gummy.
Print your vitamins here
It’s a bloody emotional roller-coaster!
For International Women’s Day last Sunday, London studio Animade collaborated with charity Bloody Good Period to create a series of GIFs that open up the conversation about periods, which is still a taboo subject for many. The 3D animation depicts a friendly uterus going through a whole roller coaster of emotions. Feeling hungry, angry, sad, horny, sleepy, moody and many more emotions is surely something that every woman can relate to during her cycle. The animations on social media express all of these in a funny way, help to destigmatise the topic, and remind women that it is alright to feel all these things.
Understand your cycle here
Junk (yard) food.
Working from home and gym closures have made the sofa and running shoes a key part of our day. So, thinking ahead to when these items reach the end of their life, worn away by hours of conference calls and marathon training (ha!), will we be able to dispose of them sustainably? Polyurethane – the foam that is commonly used in couch cushions and trainers – is hard to recycle, and therefore tends to end up in landfill. However, scientists at Germany’s UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research have discovered a bacterium that is able to feed on and break down the foam. It will take time for this to become a viable scalable solution, but it is important to start imagining and planning for a future where products can be made with their entire (sustainable) lifecycle in mind.
Rubbish food here
Sustainable scotch.
Diageo has just announced that it will be releasing the world’s first 100% plastic-free, paper-based spirits bottle in early 2021. The limited edition of Johnnie Walker whisky will be made entirely from sustainably sourced wood, with a special inner coating that makes the material food safe without compromising its ability to be fully recyclable in standard waste streams. It’s an exciting step for the brand that opens up a whole new world of design codes and conventions for the category and pushes the boundaries of what sustainability looks and feels like.
Paper drams here
Drive-in Van Gogh.
With museums and galleries having to close their doors during lockdown, we have seen many turn to virtual reality to continue bringing art and culture to their audiences. Toronto’s approach manages to marry the digital and the physical in a socially distant way: local art lovers can drive their cars into a 4,000 square foot warehouse and watch Van Gogh’s Impressionist art come to life, projected on the surfaces all around them. As co-producer Corey Ross describes, “The lights go down and the projection begins. It [is] almost as if the car is floating through the paintings.”
Starry, starry nights here
Lessons in Herstory.
Flick through any standard history book, and one thing is clear: history as we know it has been written for and by men. For example, only 11% of the stories in US History Textbooks are about women. The Daughters of the Evolution platform decided to change this by creating Lessons in Herstory, an app that uses AR to bring to life the forgotten heroes in history textbooks: women. By putting a new lens on history, this app has the power to inspire the next generation through the stories of powerful women, using a digital medium that excites and feels right for today’s young students.
Inspire her future here
Home is where the tech is.
How will tomorrow’s technologies redefine the way we live at home? That’s the question driving Everyday Experiments, a new series of projects launched by Ikea, its research lab (Space10) and a group of leading design and technology studios. There are currently 18 digital prototypes live on the website, ranging from fun to functional. For example, Spatial Instruments (pictured above) lets you create music using the layout or design of your room: moving the camera around to focus on shapes and objects triggers different sounds, allowing you to treat each one like a musical instrument. Lockdown has already redefined our relationship with the home – this is another exciting way of keeping this key space alive, playful and helping us view it a little differently everyday.⠀
Homes in harmony here
Jet suit paramedic!
The Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS) has working hard to find innovative solutions for paramedics to get to patients in need faster. And who would have thought that jetpack suitscould be the answer to that? Collaborating with Gravity Industries, the GNAAS has been carrying out various tests in order to make this work. They have been trialling paramedics wearing jet suits to allow them to reach patients in less accessible location in mere minutes. So perhaps the future holds flying cars… and zooming paramedics!
Fly to the future here
The price is green.
Recently, we have seen a number of supermarkets move away from traditional models and step into the future, offering a more sustainable and circular approach. (If you’re a That’s Interesting aficionado, you may remember our recent example of ASDA’s reduce, reuse and recycle store.) Swedish food brand Felix offers its own take on sustainable shopping by opening a pop-up named The Climate Store, where products are priced according to their carbon dioxide emissions. The higher the emissions, the more expensive the product, and consumers pay with carbon dioxide equivalents (instead of standard currency) and are encouraged to stick to a specific budget. A bold move to change consumer behaviour by creating a clear link between our purchase decisions and environmental impact.
Go shopping here
Make-up for all.
In 2019, Shiseido surveyed consumers in Japan to find out more about their shifting attitudes to male grooming (a topic we also discussed in our Different Path article on Toxic Masculinity). The results revealed a growing interest in colour cosmetics among men, but also a lack of understanding on how to navigate the category. To address this and encourage self-expression and experimentation among men, Shiseido has created a facial map to help them analyse their facial features and identify the products most suited to them. The tool is hosted on a dedicated YouTube channel and features four archetypes – Active, Cool, Kind and Master – that help consumers decide which facial profile they prefer, and offers guidelines on using colour cosmetics to match it.
Find your look here
Did they help?
As we discuss in our latest Different Path article, these testing times are an opportunity for brands to make a real difference and engage with individuals and communities through support and solidarity. Their response to today’s crisis will have a long term impact on the opinions and choices of an increasingly values-driven consumer. Many brands have risen to the challenge, but plenty still need to catch up, and it will be easy to know which ones fell short: new website ‘Did They Help?’ lets people find out how businesses and celebrities responded to Covid-19. The independent watchdog service collects and catalogues data on the good and bad deeds of companies and influencers, thereby creating a comprehensive database to help people make better, more informed decisions in the future about where
they spend their money and who they invest in.
See who’s on the naughty list here