The world is turned upside down, with empty streets for the past couple of months. Behind this seeming tranquility, there has been a storm raging through our values and structures. It gave us the space to think about a complete ‘reset’. How can we restructure existing dysfunctional systems? In this series, we will showcase the perspectives of a variety of thought leaders who will reflect on our present-day situation. Through the lens of their own area of expertise and with an emphasis on the power of design and imagination. The corona crisis is, without a doubt, a crisis that is leaving behind a trail of victims. But which transformations will we be left within the aftermath? During these times, it is the creatives, philosophers, scientists, makers, and designers who can visualise new scenarios, and through hypothesising can develop new insights into our future.
About Marjan van Aubel
“What if every object in your house can be a solar panel? How can we use all possible surfaces to create energy?” These types of questions form the base for Marjan van Aubel’s work as an award-winning solar designer. Her artful designs span the field of sustainability and technology and together with companies like Swarovski and the Dutch Energy Centre she aims to promote extreme energy efficiency. Her work integrates solar cells, that mimic the process of photosynthesis in plants, into common objects like tables but also windows and other glass surfaces, creating everyday artworks that serve multiple purposes. ‘A table is not just a table, but also a producer of electricity’.
Graduating from the Royal College of Art as well as Rietveld Academy, van Aubel has exhibited her work worldwide, including the V&A in London, the MoMa in New York and the Stedelijk in Amsterdam. Moreover in 2021 her glass solar ceiling will be exhibited in Dubai as part of the Dutch pavilion of the World Expo.
Marjan van Aubel Ze is gefascineerd door de zon – als inspiratie voor de vormgeving van objecten, maar vooral als energiebron. „Wij moeten de zon leren aanwenden”, zegt Marjan van Aubel.
‘My aim is to get people to think differently about solar,’ said solar designer Marjan van Aubel during her talk at What Design Can Do Live in Amsterdam in 2018. That day van Aubel was on hand to present her ground-breaking project, Power Plant: the world’s first self-powering greenhouse. It was this project that made her one of the thirteen winners of the first What Design Can Do Climate Action Challenge. >>>>
DeZeen - Marjan van Aubel has designed a set of stained glass-style solar panels that will form part of the Dutch pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. Made from polyethylene terephthalate, or PET, these lightweight plastic modules can simultaneously generate solar power and let tinted daylight pass through. "They're beautiful and relevant," Marjan van Aubel said in her live interview with Dezeen CEO Marcus Fairs for VDF. "It will really change perspectives". >>
Next Nature - Solar cells are often considered an eyesore, used for their sustainability yet not for their beauty. Installed on roofs or in solar parks, they take up precious space. Well that’s about it to change if it’s up to solar designer Marjan van Aubel. With her innovative take on this intriguing technology, her goal is to turn solar cells into real objects of desire. >>
