Anusha Balakrishnan

Anusha Balakrishnan featured image

About

I am a Designer-Maker from Mumbai, India currently pushing the boundaries of my design prowess in the MA Design Products program (School of Design) in the Object Mediated Interactions (OMI) platform. My design practice in the past included design for manufacturing, form-based product design, behavioral - research-based products, and humanitarian aid in India (deployment of handwashing stations in rural India and empowerment through sustainable livelihood generation).


Recent Awards:

Winner - OPPOxRCA Beyond Smart 2022

https://www.rca.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/oppo-x-rca-2022-beyond-smart/

https://www.oppo.com/en/newsroom/press/oppo-and-the-rca-collaboration-2022/


Publications:

The Maize Project, The Red Book 2022, London Design Festival (LDF)


Exhibitions:

’RCA Design Products x OPPO’ London Design Festival’2022 Brompton Design District - 17 September 2022 - 25 September 2022

Support Systems’ Milan Design Week’2022, Base, Milano 06 June 2022 - 12 June 2022


Relevant experience:

Design Research Associate (full-time) - IDC School of Design, IIT Bombay, India from July 2019 to March 2020

Product Design Intern (full-time) All Time Plastics Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, India from December 2018 to May 2019

Product Design Intern (part-time) IDC School of Design, IIT Bombay, India from May 2018 to July 2018


Education:

MA Design Products - Royal College of Art, London from September 2021 to present

Graduate Diploma (Art & Design) - Royal College of Art, London from July 2020 to June 2021

Undergraduate Diploma (Industrial Design) - D J Academy of Design, India, from June 2015 to August 2019

Contact

Degree Details

Statement

My creative work explores the intrinsic link between humans, products, and nature to foster physical, emotional, and social well-being through tangible human-product interactions while critiquing and reflecting on the role and significance of design.

I firmly believe that design has the power to positively influence and enhance the lives of individuals on multiple levels. I am dedicated to creating products that not only fulfill functional requirements but also evoke meaningful and transformative experiences while delving into our internal worlds - the intricate nuances of human behaviour, emotions, and social dynamics.

Whether it is through the aesthetics, materials, or functionality of a product, design has the power to evoke joy, serenity, comfort, or even a sense of awe, allowing individuals to navigate their emotional landscapes more effectively.

Also, I love Circles!

The Human Barometer

A study (Sylvia Kämpfer & Michael Mutz, 2011) found that people surveyed on exceptionally sunny days indicated higher positive moods than respondents interviewed on days with "ordinary" weather. While these feelings appear to be fleeting and variable from day to day, it suggests that good weather usually affects our overall mood. My project aims to enquire and highlight the complex relationship between our moods and the weather surrounding us. Triggered by a meditative moment of personal attention and direct engagement, the design aims to nurture mediation between the mind, body, and the ecosystem.
To create an “ideal weather-like condition” inside the drawer, it was crucial for me to comprehend and analyze the weather patterns and seasons of London, as well as understand how people’s emotions and sensations vary throughout different seasons. This formed the foundation for my approach, which also involved breaking down the analysis into the five senses through which humans perceive and experience weather.
My project nurtures these complex collective feelings, by using visuals of the sky, colors, and lights, triggered by real-time weather data. In the office, the worker is invited to take a short break, open the desk-cabinet, and immerse themselves in an intimate and uncanny, a weather (/ or atmosphere) inside.
Data Visualized by Seenyoung Kang (RCA Visual Communication)

Prototype in Context

JPA Designs has collaborated with prominent airline industries, specializing in creating immersive experiences and branding for aircraft interiors. This collaboration proved valuable for my project as it provided insights into their expertise in designing interiors that evoke a sense of calmness and comfort for passengers at high altitudes. Their meticulous attention to details such as lighting, seating arrangements, and ergonomic considerations for the human body made them an ideal parallel to explore within my narrative.


User 1

Special Thanks to JPA Designs

Medium: Acrylic discs installed in a metal filing cabinet

Size: 400x400x600 mm

The Blue Sky Thinker

The potential of daydreaming isn’t recognized by societies obsessed with productivity. But some of our greatest insights come when we stop trying to be purposeful and instead respect the creative potential of reverie. Window daydreaming is a strategic rebellion against the excessive demands of immediate (but ultimately insignificant) pressures – in favor of the diffuse, but very serious, search for the wisdom of the unexplored deep self.

A physical representation of “thinking” (the creative process of blue sky thinking/working)

Inspired by the window, and the act of staring out of it when we think, this piece intends to resemble moving clouds such that one can stare into it and continue thinking. It is connected to pressure sensors wherein when people tap their feet, the discs start moving and compel them to stare at it.


01 Feed Me Colour

Interactive real-time generative light sculpture using RGB color sensors and Arduino

In Collaboration with Claudio Quintana, Lewis Fleming and Rohan Kakad