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Design Beyond Aesthetics
A journal exploring electronic music, sound, and visual culture through a design perspective—connecting technology, rhythm, and contemporary creative practice. This platform focuses on the structures behind electronic music: from techno and house to sound design, production, and cultural movements. It examines how music is shaped by machines, systems, and environments—bridging design thinking with sonic experimentation.
While rooted in design, the focus shifts toward electronic music as a cultural and technological language, analyzing genres, artists, tools, and the spaces where sound becomes experience. Published on otaviosantiago.com, this is an independent perspective on how music, design, and technology intersect—moving beyond aesthetics into structure, systems, and culture.
Graphic, Web & Motion Designer
Bianca Censori’s Bio Pop: Performance Furniture, Power, and the Architecture of Bodily Constraint
Bianca Censori Bio Pop Performance Furniture as Social Architecture Bianca Censori’s Bio Pop performance furniture marks a provocative intersection between design, architecture, and performance art. Presented in Seoul, the work transforms tables, chairs, and chandeliers into apparatuses that physically restrain women’s bodies, reframing furniture not as passive objects, but as active agents of power. Rather than functioning as utilitarian supports, the furniture operates as a
3 days ago
Recycled Food Waste Robotics: EPFL’s ‘Claw’ Machines Made from Crustacean Shells
When Food Waste Becomes Functional Technology At EPFL’s CREATE Lab, scientists are redefining the boundaries between waste, biology, and robotics. In a recent study, researchers developed robotic claw machines made from recycled food waste , using crustacean shells—specifically langoustine tails—as structural components for functional robotic systems. The project challenges the dominance of metal, plastic, and synthetic composites by asking a radical question: can biological
Mar 11
A Metallic Paper Piggy Bank That Teaches Children to Save and Give
PLANBUREAU Studio has created a metallic paper piggy bank for the Hungarian branch of Red Noses International , an organization that supports hospital clown doctors. The brief was simple yet challenging: design an object for the charity shop that teaches children how to save and how to donate, all while keeping the retail price under 10 EUR and production costs low. The result is a playful, build-it-yourself piggy bank made entirely of paper. This design turns a familiar ob
Feb 22
Design and Art: Where Visual Culture, Function, and Expression Intersect
The relationship between design and art has shaped visual culture for centuries. While often treated as separate disciplines, design and art continuously influence, challenge, and redefine one another. Together, they form a shared language of expression, structure, meaning, and cultural reflection . Design is commonly associated with function, clarity, and communication. Art is associated with expression, interpretation, and autonomy. Yet in practice, the boundary between
Feb 11
Design and Sustainability: Responsible Design for a Sustainable Future
The connection between design and sustainability is no longer optional — it is essential. Design shapes products, systems, behaviors, and values. Every decision, from material choice to digital interface, carries environmental, social, and cultural consequences. Design determines not only what we create, but how it is produced, distributed, consumed, and discarded. In a world facing climate urgency, resource scarcity, and social imbalance, design has moved from decoration
Feb 9
Design and Technology: How Innovation Shapes Contemporary Culture
Design and technology have always evolved together, shaping how societies build, move, communicate, and imagine the future. From the invention of printing to digital interfaces, every technological shift has transformed how design functions as a cultural and practical tool. Today, design and technology are inseparable forces defining contemporary and future visual language. Technology introduces new tools, systems, and possibilities, while design gives those systems form,
Feb 5
LEO Flight Unveils the Electric Solo JetBike — A Propeller-Free Personal Air Vehicle for Unlicensed Pilots
An Electric Solo JetBike With Enclosed Jet Propulsion Instead of Propellers LEO Flight has introduced the electric Solo JetBike , a compact one-person aircraft concept that hovers using electric jets instead of propellers . This innovative design serves as a low-altitude personal air vehicle that requires no pilot’s license . The electric Solo JetBike proposes a radically different approach to ultralight aviation. Following the still-concept LEO Coupe , the JetBike utilizes
Jan 22
Les Caryatides Guyancourt: When Irony Becomes Architectural Infrastructure
Les Caryatides Guyancourt and French Postmodernism Les Caryatides Guyancourt stands as one of the most provocative expressions of French postmodern architecture from the early 1990s. Designed by Manuel Núñez Yanowsky, the housing complex emerges at a moment when architects in France were actively rejecting late-modern functionalism and reintroducing history, symbolism, and theatrical form into the built environment. Alongside figures like Ricardo Bofill and Christian de Port
Jan 16
A Moss-Covered Earthen Roof Shapes the Sekiyuan Teahouse Waiting Area in Japan
A Moss-Covered Earthen Roof Blends Architecture and Landscape The Sekiyuan Waiting Area in Ichihara City, Chiba, is a small architectural gesture with unusually rich cultural depth. Designed and built by Kurosawa Kawara-ten together with an architect and an artist—none of them professional builders in the traditional sense—the structure is a quiet but significant exploration of how informal building practices can contribute to contemporary architecture. The project was car
Jan 13
Nike Wearable Design: Project Amplify and the Rise of Motor-Assisted Movement
Nike’s Project Amplify signals a new chapter in Nike wearable design , where footwear evolves into a hybrid system that extends the body itself. Rather than focusing on elite performance gains, the motor-assisted anklet reframes athletic design around accessibility, endurance, and everyday movement. Developed in collaboration with robotics company Dephy, Project Amplify is conceived as a wearable “second set of calf muscles.” The device adheres to the lower leg, integrating a
Jan 11
3D Printed Carbon Fiber Instruments: Forte3D’s Lightweight Cello and Violin
Why 3D Printed Carbon Fiber Instruments Matter for Modern Musicians Forte3D is rethinking the future of string performance with 3D printed carbon fiber instruments built to survive real-world conditions that often damage traditional wood. Where wooden cellos and violins can crack, warp, or slowly deform with changes in humidity and temperature, carbon fiber stays stable—helping musicians travel, rehearse, and perform with less anxiety about the environment. The idea began w
Jan 10
Plant-Based Plastic That Dissolves in Water Could Redefine Sustainable Packaging
A new plant-based plastic developed by researchers at Japan’s RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science dissolves completely in water within just a few hours — leaving no microplastics or residue behind. Built from cellulose, one of the most abundant natural materials on Earth, the innovation points toward a future where packaging no longer becomes permanent pollution. How This Plant-Based Plastic Works The newly developed plant-based plastic is built using carboxymethyl cel
Jan 7
Trovador: The Tree-Planting Robot Designed to Fight Deforestation and Restore Burned Landscapes
How the Tree-Planting Robot Works on Burned and Steep Terrain Trovador is an autonomous tree-planting robot designed to combat deforestation by restoring burned and degraded land. Developed by engineering students Marta Bernardino and Sebastião Mendonça , the project proposes an automated method capable of planting seedlings in steep, fire-affected areas where human access is difficult or dangerous. The first prototype, introduced in 2023 by Bernardino, takes the form of
Jan 6
Plastic-Free Soy Sauce Fish Dropper Designed to Decompose in Weeks, Not Years
Rethinking Single-Use Objects with a Plastic-Free Soy Sauce Fish Dropper Single-use food packaging is often designed for moments but persists for decades. The plastic-free soy sauce fish dropper created by Heliograf and Vert Design challenges this imbalance by aligning material lifespan with actual use. Named Holy Carp! , the small container replaces the iconic plastic soy sauce fish with a biodegradable alternative that decomposes in soil within weeks instead of years. Des
Jan 5
World’s First Flying Car Begins Hand Assembly in California
The world’s first flying car has officially entered production. Alef Aeronautics has started hand-assembling its Alef Model A in California, marking a major milestone in personal mobility. Built in Silicon Valley, the vehicle represents the first consumer-ready version of a flying car designed for real-world use, testing, and future scalability. Alef Aeronautics Starts Production of Its Flying Car Alef Aeronautics confirmed that production of its flying car , the Model A Ult
Jan 4
Smart Socks for Diabetes That Restore Sensation and Reduce Chronic Pain
Smart Socks for Diabetes That Help Users Feel the Ground Again People living with diabetes often struggle with neuropathy , a nerve-damage condition that reduces sensation in the feet and increases the risk of falls, ulcers, chronic pain, and infections. ETH Zurich spin-off MYNERVA has created a breakthrough solution : Leia , a pair of smart socks for diabetes designed to restore sensation in the foot sole and relieve neuropathic pain without medication. Leia integrates elec
Dec 30, 2025
RMIT Researchers Reimagine Rammed Earth Using Cardboard Tubes as Permanent Formwork
Researchers at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Australia have developed a groundbreaking construction material that encases rammed earth inside permanent cardboard tubes , eliminating the need for cement and significantly reducing embodied carbon. The system, known as CCRE ( cardboard-confined rammed earth ) , offers a low-carbon, lightweight, and thermally efficient alternative for low-rise and modular architecture. A low-carbon redesign of rammed earth
Dec 29, 2025
Meet Ori: the world’s first frameless umbrella inspired by origami
A new hardware startup founded by MIT engineers and leading origami innovators is rethinking one of the most overlooked pieces of everyday design : the umbrella. Ori , the world’s first frameless origami umbrella , replaces metal ribs and fabric with a single engineered canopy that folds with architectural precision. At full size, Ori offers a standard 1-meter canopy. When closed, it collapses into a 3.5 × 23 cm cylinder , turning the canopy itself into the supporting structu
Dec 28, 2025
A 3D Printed Synthesizer for Toddlers: Where Early Learning Meets Creative Technology
A 3D Printed Synthesizer for Toddlers: Designing Early Creativity Through Play What if a toddler’s first toy wasn’t just for pushing buttons — but for composing electronic music ? Software engineer Alastair Roberts brings that idea to life with Alma , a fully functional 3D printed synthesizer for toddlers . Designed as a playful introduction to sound, rhythm, and creative discovery, Alma bridges the worlds of product design, music technology, and childhood learning . With an
Dec 23, 2025
Mirumi: The Mini Attachable Robot That Clings, Reacts, and Comes to Life Through Design
What begins as a cute fashion accessory quickly reveals itself as an impressive case study in interaction design , tactile robotics , and emotional technology . Mirumi , the mini attachable robot developed by Yukai Engineering , transforms everyday objects—bag handles, belt loops, straps—into small stages for expression. Once a prototype shown at CES 2025 , the robot is now headed toward real production, bringing lifelike behavior, soft materials, and charm into the world of
Dec 20, 2025
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