Avalanche

Inherently out of place in the classically historic space, Avalanche is strategically situated to provoke profoundly personal reactions from each visitor that passes through: a designer’s interpretation of a suspended moment in time where we are faced with a mindful revelation of our own mortality.

On entering, small groups of visitors will find a lowly lit, deceptively reflective space, bringing a sense of entrapment and confusion around the uncertain pathway through. Grappling with the increasing darkness of the narrow, constricting corridor, visitors are urged to pause in a heightened sense of consciousness, as they toy with the human instinct to find the safest route out.

“Inspiration for this project was found in the role that human factors make in our decision-making on uncertain backcountry terrain,” says McCormick. “Avalanche can be seen as a poetic metaphor, meant to offer an opportunity for visitors to take pause between the darkness and the light – even for just a brief moment,” he adds. “We recognise that a critical mass is required to instigate societal change when it comes to the shifts in our environment – however this collective awareness has to start with the individual.”

To achieve the amplified, reflective surface areas that evoke both compression and expansion from within, Avalanche employs Barrisol’s versatile material, which can be stretched and moulded into precision pieces and organic forms.

Supported by Barrisol Welch and Osram.

Further support by the High Commission of Canada in the United Kingdom.

Part of London Design Festival 2019 at the V&A.

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