Daniel Karaj

Eggriculture is an exploration into the use of household chickens and eggs as bioreactors to reframe lab grown meat.

Consumer enthusiasm towards lab grown meat is limited, YouGov found that only 19% of British consumers "probably would try" lab grown meat. The prevalence of “high tech” framing through journalism, imagery and speculative design is further limiting this enthusiasm, leading consumers to believe that lab grown meat is "unnatural and unappealing food" limiting its potential for positive environmental impact.

Developed in consultation with cellular agriculture startup Hoxton Farms, Eggriculture is a proposal in which cultured meat is incubated using household chickens in a consumers garden. Unfertilised eggs are given transformation factors to induce pluripotent stem cells and then growth factors to guide the cells into producing a portion of steak, bacon or other meat following a 3 week incubation period underneath a brooding hen.

The proposal has three aims, humanising lab grown meat, reducing some of the economical concerns by leveraging experience design principles and aligning lab grown meat with the home grown movement. In doing so consumers are encouraged to make more sustainable purchasing decisions in their life more broadly.

Cymatic Projections is an exploration in analogue music visualisation.

Audio is becoming increasingly prominent in how we interact with technology. AI driven voice assistants such as Google Assistant or Alexa are cited as the future of human computer interaction. To accompany these audio driven experiences a variety of visuals are used, from Google Home's four LEDS, Amazon Home's LED ring and the HomePod glowing top display. 

These LEDs and displays lack expression and are deeply limited to the device in which they are built. This project proposes the use of cymatic projections to create more expressive audio visualisations that integrate better into the environment they are in.

Cymatics are patterns formed on the surface of a vibrating liquid. By projecting and focusing light through this liquid, the patterns can be displayed as an image on a two dimensional surface. By varying the frequency of the audio input, a wide variety of patterns can be formed as subsequently projected onto the environment.

Amplify is a recording and playback device for children with selective mutism.

Developed in collaboration with mental health charity NAMI, Amplify takes the form of a customisable avatar which allows children to record up to four phrases at home with their parents to playback in social settings.

Selective Mutism is an anxiety disorder where children are unable to speak in certain social situations. They suffer from a freeze response and are unable to communicate at all. If left untreated disorder can persist into adulthood.

Inspired by the stories of families using apps, flash cards and other communication methods to aid with selective mutism, Amplify not only aids with communication but also with therapy through the process of “desensitisation” and “shaping.” Amplify is worn as a necklace with buttons on the back used to record and playback essential phrases aid children in cases where their disorder is overwhelming.

The design of the avatar is customised to match the appearance of the child. This is important for a form of therapy called “self modelling” where children are able to see a version of themselves successfully performing a task.

Amplify consists of a wooden shell and simple components with optional features and accessories to be swapped out, manipulating the sounds recordings and introducing concepts from play and music therapy.

Night Lights, exhibited as part of Shibuya Pixel Art 2020, is an interpretation of Tokyo's lights and streets.

Pixel Art is a graphic style in which the pixels that make up an image are visible and form a key component of the design. Originally a result of limited computer graphics hardware the style has seen continued popularity in digital content particularly in relation to the current retro game revival. Shibuya Pixel Art is an annual exhibition and competition which aims to showcase some of the best works in the genre in a more traditional gallery context thereby increasing the reach of the format to a wider audience and adding legitimacy through the use of traditional gallery spaces. 

Night Lights was an effort to bring influences from constructivism and concrete art to the pixel art space, creating a piece for which the use of pixels felt like a natural representation rather than as a limitation. For this it was highlighted by the german design studio eBoy “godfathers” of the pixel art movement.