Studio project (2015) with Camille Blin, Nicolas Haeni, Vincent Jacquier
The ECAL students of the Bachelor Photography and Master Product Design present a series of interactive installations showing how mobile phone cameras and the selfie phenomenon changed the way we look at ourselves.
How can one create objects and installations around the portrait theme in this digital age? What means are available to disseminate these? How can one make visitors interact with the exhibits and turn viewers into the main actors in the exhibition?
Over a semester, 1st year Master Product Design students and 2nd year Bachelor Photography students from ECAL/University of Art and Design Lausanne worked on these issues with the aim to present their findings as part of an exhibition.
Under the watchful eye of Vincent Jacquier, Head of the Visual Communication Department, of designer Camille Blin and photographer Nicolas Haeni, the students were able to understand, using various approaches, how current – material or virtual – technology alters our traditional relationship with portraits, be they selfies or pictures of others.
Using modern media as well as more run-of-the-mill devices, exhibition visitors are invited to directly experiment the processes imagined by the students, allowing them to discover new interactive and fun ways of having their picture taken 3.0 style.
Based on this principle, the exhibition stages an installation playing with the visitor’s shadow; the combination of a mirror and scanner to create realistic or distorted self-portraits; an image which is altered through song; a tribute to famous departed designers through a system of filters placed in front of a smartphone; analogically merged faces; a 180° portrait produced by a range of reflective surfaces; a trompe-l’œil projection on a mask; a family of objects able to hijack the smartphone camera function to create original images; a poetic reinterpretation Instagram; and finally, self-portraits captured by the photo itself.
Images: ECAL/Nicolas Haeni
MA PRODUCT DESIGN
with Christophe Guberan
‘Stool Story’ invited students to explore innovative, re-contextualised, or intriguing materials and production techniques to create a simple yet fundamentally structural typology: the stool. Each process was documented through a short, vertically formatted video. The result is a range of stools, each demonstrating a unique perspective and approach.
MA PRODUCT DESIGN
with Philippe Malouin
SolarPunk is a design exploration into how increasingly accessible solar energy might shape and integrate into our everyday lives in the near future. Embracing a hopeful vision of sustainability, the movement challenges traditional perceptions of renewable energy by imagining creative, aesthetic, and functional uses of solar power. This collection of work was created by first-year Master’s students in Product Design at ECAL, under the guidance of designer Philippe Malouin. Developed specifically for the Soleil·s exhibition at the MUDAC design museum in Lausanne, the projects reflect bold experimentation and speculative thinking. Rather than focusing solely on efficiency or utility, the students explored poetic, playful, and sometimes unconventional applications of solar energy, highlighting the emotional and experiential potential of this technology. Among the featured works are two standout projects which have been developed and feature in the exhibition: ‘Solar Shade' by Carl Johan Jacobsen, a wearable hat that powers a cooling vest using flexible solar panels, and ‘Butterfly Sunglasses’ by Takumi Ise, simple lightweight eyewear that combines colour, movement, and solar functionality.
MA PRODUCT DESIGN
with Augustin Scott de Martinville
Designed in CH, Made in JP is a collaborative project between ECAL Master Product Design, Karimoku New Standard, and Presence Switzerland. From 13 April to 13 October 2025, representatives from countries across the globe will gather to showcase innovation, culture, and sustainability at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan. For Switzerland’s pavilion, MA Product Design students at ECAL were tasked with designing a stackable wooden chair to be produced in Japan by Karimoku New Standard, intended to furnish the lightweight, bubble-inspired architecture by Manuel Herz. Under the guidance of Augustin Scott de Martinville, the class developed ten chair designs, each offering a distinct perspective. Some draw inspiration from the pavilion’s scenography, while others explore cultural iconography or celebrate the symbiosis between two nations—each unique in heritage yet united by shared values of craftsmanship and innovation. Of the ten designs, one was selected to be produced for the pavilion: HUG, designed by Jacob Kouthoofd Martensson and Min Xiyao, is a circular chair that stacks inversely—a feature that not only informs its name but also visually embodies the essence of collaboration. This versatile design accommodates a range of uses, from conferences to general pavilion seating. The final chair will be unveiled both in Osaka in the Swiss Pavilion at the World Expo 2025, and during Milan Design Week 2025, with the full project exhibited at the House of Switzerland.
MA PRODUCT DESIGN
with Augustin Scott de Martinville
Heat pumps are energy-efficient household climate systems essential for transitioning to renewable energy and combating climate change. Typically installed outside close-by to buildings, they are becoming common visual elements in urban landscapes, often resembling air conditioners with limited design variety across brands. To reimagine these essential typologies, Viessmann, a world leading Heat Pump producer, invited MA Product Design students from ECAL to develop innovative concepts, resulting in designs that challenge norms and explore new visual identities of heat pumps.
MA PRODUCT DESIGN
with Thélonious Goupil
During this one-week workshop led by Thélonious Goupil, edits were made to a ‘drop false ceiling’ in Bar Gala Lausanne. By hacking the system, playing with existing elements such as lighting or ventilators, the outdate ceiling was given new life without the need for full renovation.