Tag Archives: balloon

These delicious candy-like chairs are shockingly made from real balloons

Posted on by

Chairs, stools, and couches come in all shapes and sizes, but they are bound by a single hard requirement. They must be stable enough and sturdy enough so that people can sit on them with confidence that they won’t fall on their butts when they least expect it. Some seats put that requirement at the heart of their visual design, exuding that stability and durability simply by the way they look. Others, on the other hand, try to trick the mind by presenting what is almost like an optical illusion, making a sofa float in mid-air without making you crash to the ground. This striking collection of chairs and seats straddle the fine line between these two, offering furniture that seems to be structurally sound yet fragile enough to pop and burst at the slightest touch.

Designer: Seungjin Yang

There is something about balloons that bring out the inner child in us. Even grownups still find something fascinating about balloons twisted into different shapes and creatures. A balloon dog made of metal steel even became a famed designer Jeff Koons’ iconic signature. Balloons’ often shiny colors convey a sense of playfulness, while their round forms that encapsulate air almost give them an ephemeral character, two qualities you might not exactly associate with something that needs to be stable and sturdy, like chairs.

That, however, is exactly what the Blowing collection brings to the table, or rather to the floor. Made from different balloon sizes shaped into rods, circles, and spirals, the chairs immediately capture one’s attention because of their unusual shapes. Whether opaque or translucent, the bright colors and shiny surfaces will probably make one think of candies, which should probably be a cautionary note for parents with toddlers and babes.

Despite how whimsical they look, the chairs are all serious business when it comes to being chairs. Each balloon is blown up and shaped before being bathed in epoxy several times over. The multiple layers of resin are necessary to make them solid enough to support people of different weights. Once that treatment is done, the parts are assembled into a single eye-catching piece, turning several balloons into stools, chairs, or even couches for people of different ages.

The design allows for a variety of color combinations, whether going for a single chromatic theme or letting loose on the paintbrush. Admittedly, the fanciful visage of these chairs might not fit some interiors, but if you’re looking for something that will instantly spark interest and conversation, you can do no wrong with a chair that both looks charming and yet also a little worrying at the same time.

The post These delicious candy-like chairs are shockingly made from real balloons first appeared on Yanko Design.

Balloon-powered Spaceship Neptune promises a luxurious way to tour outer space

Posted on by

Many private companies are working hard to make space travel more economical as well as more profitable. The latter could involve not just commutes but, more importantly, “space tourism.” To make that possible, however, rockets have to be reusable instead of being obliterated on reentry. Either that or spacecraft could take off on a runway the same way that airplanes do. Another option that’s starting to attract interest uses a style of flying that predates airplanes, relying on a gigantic balloon to lift people into the upper layers of our atmosphere. It may sound almost archaic, but the passenger capsule for one such spacecraft could very well be the most extravagant way to hold a cocktail party in outer space.

Designer: Of My Imagination

Of course, the balloon that will carry Space Perspective’s Neptune spacecraft won’t be the same hot air balloons you’ll see in the sky. A huge high-performance hydrogen balloon will have enough lifting power and enough durability to safely bring people to the outer edges of our planet for a relaxing outer space tour. And when it’s time to return to terra firma, the most advanced parachutes promise the same safety when landing down in the ocean.

While a balloon flight sounds almost boring compared to the adrenaline rush of a rocket launch, one look inside the newly-revealed capsule shows just how different it is from what the likes of Space X and Blue Origin have in mind so far when talking about space tourism. While these two want to offer an adventure similar to a roller coaster ride with some Zero-G moments, Space Perspective wants to create an atmosphere that is more chill, more educational, and perhaps even more memorable.

The Spaceship Neptune’s pressurized passenger capsule looks more like a compact cruise ship cabin than a rocket or plane. The spherical shape of the capsule offers more headroom for more comfortable viewing of the Earth and space through large windows. The seats definitely look more elegant than typical rocket seats, with holders for drinks even. And where do those drinks come from? Why from the bar in the back, of course! And before you ask, yes, there’s a restroom for those who can’t hold their liquids well.

The exterior of the capsule has also been redesigned to look more refined and also be safer. Below the sphere is a splash cone that will help ensure a softer water landing as much as possible. The complete form almost looks like a miniature balloon, so that the Spaceship Neptune and its hydrogen balloon look like two siblings in ascent, presuming you can actually see it from the side in outer space.

Space Perspective definitely offers a different perspective (pun intended) on how to enjoy space tours. A balloon’s slower ascent, longer time at its apex, and controlled descent offer a more relaxed and perhaps safer environment for appreciating our planet and learning more about it. True, it doesn’t have the thrilling zero gravity experience that many crave, but that’s easier to replicate on Earth than lounging in peace in outer space.

The post Balloon-powered Spaceship Neptune promises a luxurious way to tour outer space first appeared on Yanko Design.

World View balloon spacecraft wants to take space tourism to new heights

Posted on by

Space is often said to be the next frontier, at least as far as discovering new places and information goes. Most of us, however, still have a lot to learn about our own planet, especially since we rarely see the Earth from a different point of view. Space, at least those few hundred kilometers beyond our atmosphere, offers that perfect vantage point that will hopefully give us a different and better perspective of our home, literally and figuratively. That’s the kind of life-changing experience that the budding space tourism is promising, and one company is trying to promote a different kind of experience that’s meant to be enjoyed in a relaxing manner rather than the thrilling adventure the likes that Blue Origin, SpaceX, or Virgin Galactic want to give.

Designer: PriestmanGoode

When you hear the phrase “space tourism,” you will most likely imagine trips beyond our atmosphere aboard typical spacecraft like rockets. Indeed for companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, that’s the most conventional way to reach the skies. Virgin Galactic, on the other hand, is taking the runway less traveled with a spaceship that takes off like an airplane, reducing the need for expensive and risky rocket launches.

These space travel experiences, however, offer just a brief glimpse of the world below them, lasting just a few minutes or an hour or two at most. They offer zero gravity, technically micro-gravity, experiences that often fill our imaginations and satisfy childhood dreams of becoming astronauts. These brief, exhilarating moments might be enough for an adventure of a lifetime, but it’s hardly the only way we can enjoy space or our planet from that altitude.

Just like a hot air balloon trip, World View is promising a more subdued experience but one that is just as enjoyable, especially since it stretches out to 6 to 12 hours. The balloon spacecraft “launches” just before dawn so that tourists get to see the sunrise from 30,000 meters above the Earth’s surface, just enough to see the planet’s curvature splitting Earth and space. After hovering for hours, the spacecraft slowly descends back to terra firma, gently and safely guided by parafoils.

The “tour” doesn’t include that period of weightlessness as the cabin is pressurized and climate-controlled, prioritizing comfort over thrills. The spacious area has room for eight passengers and two professional crew members and has amenities like in-flight dining, a bar, and reclining seats. Oversized windows give passengers a nearly unobstructed view, while cameras pointing back down to Earth let them zoom in on surface details.

Carried only by helium, World View’s balloons could offer a more sustainable alternative to rockets that still use precious fuel to launch. Intended to be part of more luxurious and relaxed activities like team-building exercises or retreats, this kind of spacecraft and launch technology really put a different perspective on space tourism, one that passengers will be able to savor for hours to get their money’s worth.

The post World View balloon spacecraft wants to take space tourism to new heights first appeared on Yanko Design.

Inflated Mylar Balloon Stools Won’t Pop When You Sit on Them

Posted on by

Designed by Oskar Zieta and available from the Gessato design store, the Plopp metal stool has the appearance of an inflated mylar balloon. It’s nobody’s birthday though, the stools are actually constructed of welded steel sheets that have been industrially inflated using a process developed by Zieta known as “free inner pressure deformation”. The Big Bad Wolf is impressed!

The 19.5″ stools are available in a variety of colors (red, green, yellow, black, white, grey, and raw steel) for $525 – or polished steel for $725. So while they’re certainly not the least expensive stool option, they do look the most like inflated balloons. Is that worth over $500? My wife is shaking her head no, but she’s also a notorious Jeff Koons critic.

What a surprise it’s going to be when we have guests over to the house and I pretend to inflate stools for everyone! Maybe not as surprised as my wife is going to be when she realizes I spent $2,100 on novelty stools, but the garage isn’t going to sleep in itself, you know.

The Bubble Chair’s quirky ‘inflated’ design takes inspiration from Jeff Koons’ balloon art

Posted on by

Can you make metal appear soft and inviting? Sure, some cars like the VW Beetle look softer than most, and if you’ve ever seen any of Jeff Koons’ work, he sure knows how to make objects look soft despite their metallic polished finish. However, these aren’t objects you necessarily sit on. You sit inside the VW Beetle, not on its metal exterior, so that softness is purely visual and doesn’t necessarily translate to a tactile experience. The Bubble Chair, however, makes ‘metallic softness’ a multisensorial experience. A Silver Winner of the 2021 A’ Design Award, the chair explores dichotomies. It’s soft on appearance and hard to touch, looks playful but is equally sombre with its grey finish, and since it’s made from metal, it remains cold in cooler atmospheres, and becomes hot in warmer temperatures. Like designer Grigorii Gorkovenko says, “what can be said about BUBBLE for sure – is that nobody can call it boring.”

The chair’s unique shape is the result of an unconventional combination of injection molding and hand-crafted labor. As much as 80 kilograms (176 pounds) of aluminum is used per chair, which is then laboriously hand-finished to give it its satin texture.

Calling his design style ‘serious fun’, Grigorii Gorkovenko took 8 months to put the chair together.

The Bubble Chair is a winner of the A’ Design Award for the year 2021.

Designer: Grigorii Gorkovenko

Google AI is now piloting Loon’s internet-beaming balloons

Posted on by
Alphabet’s Loon has shifted to a different type of navigation system for its internet-beaming balloons. Rather than relying on algorithms designed by humans, the balloons are using an artificial intelligence system Loon developed with Google AI over...

Alphabet’s Loon balloons are helping scientists study gravity waves

Posted on by
In between beaming internet to people in developing countries and sometimes passing for UFOs, Alphabet's Loon balloons have been busy helping scientists study how our planet works. A team led by Stanford professor Aditi Sheshadri recently published a...