Veronique Laskine Rostovsky

Véronique Laskine is a French designer based between London and Paris.

This past year at the Royal College of Art has sharpened further her eye and her sensitivity to materials. She has unlocked new ways of approaching projects both in terms of communication and innovation, while being in perfect harmony with the surrounding environment.

Experimentation has been her guiding principle throughout this master's degree in Interior Design. It was with this mindset that she chose the ‘Matter platform’. 'Learn through making' took its full meaning in this development process. It led her to develop an appetite for playing with materials at their junctions to create interesting details, as well as for storytelling. She now understands the power of narrative in projects and has made it a central part of her work.

Before joining the Royal College of Art, Véronique studied Global design at Ecole Bleue in Paris. She developed a global and holistic approach to Design, studying graphic, product and interior design together. A methodology that helped her develop different ways of perceiving the world spatially.

These years resulted in two exhibitions:

- The "Songe" Table at the Paris Design Week 2022

- The “Gypsy dance” Wallpaper at Paris Déco Off 2019 in the Drouot Hotel

“Not to dare is to have already lost. One should seek out ambitious, even unrealistic projects, because things only happen when one dreams” - Andrée Putman

This statement well conveys Véronique's vision of design. She likes to challenge frameworks with a slight touch of craziness. Always being mindful of space history and imperfections and turning them into unexpected opportunities.

Water has always been an obsession. It has followed her in her previous projects as an inexhaustible source of inspiration. Reflection, horizon, materiality, energy, depth, rhythm, immensity... This is surely due to a childhood spent exploring the seas. Naturally, she tackled the subject of excess of water at Royal College of Art. Ironically, the old factory in Woolwich, for which the project was created, is not protected by the Thames barrier and is only one kilometre away. It was an opportunity for her to work on the subject of rising water levels, where architecture, but above all interior design, must be questioned in depth. It is not a question of creating floating cities, but of adapting existing buildings to periods of flooding. An exciting challenge to take on.

RISING WATERS IN WOOLWICH

Woolwich will be flooded every year in the autumn and spring, similar to the acqua Alta in Venice.

The Thames is the main artery of London. The needs and the current ecological situation is a call for an architectural revolution. London needs alternatives in transportation, industry and housing. The Thames has this huge potential. In the 20th century, the car has influenced the way a city is planned. Water might do the same in the 21st century. The change in water levels of the Thames has been an obsession of London habitants. It is crucial to change our mentality, we might stop fighting water and welcome it. It is time to give space to the water.

Let’s rethink our habits to create a new life around water and adapt our existing buildings to periods of flooding.

Scenario - video showing rising water levels year after year

Axonometry in two stages - presenting the use of the building in flooding period

View from the canal revealing a relaxation area

View below the bridge linking the two footbridges, hiding the showers for a more intimate space. You can also see the marks indicating the height of the water. The functions of the platforms on either side of the bank change according to the water level: simple swimming line, hot bath, shower, sauna ...

Oyster

Social excess in Oyster Shells

Work on the notion of joints and junctions

With thermoplastic as given material, she decided to add the oyster to her research. It was a way to highlight the problem of quantity of plastic and micro-plastic that can be found in seas. The oyster shells it self represents the excess of society, at his peak, the day after Christmas.

Veronique Laskine Rostovsky

Oyster

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Royal College of Art