Square Inch Anthropology

This driving school consists of a series of cables strung across a yard, from which are suspended orange and white fiberglass guide poles that dictate the course the driver is supposed to follow. Though they are hung to correspond with the lines painted on the ground, their flexible design means they may also be re-hung/reconfigured to suit any challenge an instructor feels like throwing at their students.  

This rural monastery in Myanmar contains the means for preparing a massive quantity of rice at once in the form of this industrial-sized rice cooker - 100% designed and built in-house by the resident monks. A stove fueled by rice husks (a plentiful fuel) boils water at the clay brick-formed base, generating steam which rises to circulate inside of the metal cover/chamber and cook the rice piled into the four levels of platters within. The platters appear to be the type preferred by vendors for displaying and carrying their wares, and the bottom of the metal "cooking chamber" appears to be sealed with a discarded monk's robe (though uncertain about that, and there may be a rule against using a monk's robe in this way).

Consider the implications for bicycle seatrest design when this is one of the potential uses to be considered. This woman uses her bicycle to add value to an otherwise "restricted-use" public space: the bars between seats preventing one from laying down and demarcating the space allocated to each chair occupant are trumped, and ultimately, a nap is sucessfully had.

Two takes on the same design challenge: how to contain mosquito-repelling "incense" coils. Oftentimes the cheap holders included with mosquito coils are flimsy and inadequate for prolonged use, and sturdier substitutes must be found or developed. Both approaches feature repurposed/recycled components. Fairly obvious with the coconut, but the white-painted metal container needs a closer look. Each corner has a recycled metal nut attached to serve as a "foot", while the design within the squares (meant for both stability/durability and aesthetic points) are repurposed metal washers welded to one another.

How is meaning acquired? When I asked my co-workers about what the fruit on the porcelain plate meant to them, they told me that they had never seen this fruit before.

In contrast, the peach is highly significant in Chinese culture - this item's culture of origin. As more products flow in from China and are bought based upon their price and distribution range, such as these placemats (link), what significance will these objects gain as they are taken out of their relevant cultural context and thrust into an unfamiliar one?

As with those placemats, these saucers and cups were likely purchased with an eye towards affordability as opposed to aesthetics - the peach design is likely not considered when would-be purchasers are considering it, and I have yet to see proof that China is plugged in enough to design consumer goods specifically targeting Myanmar's customers. Incidentally a rough and informal measurement of a country's development - how many items are designed/produced internationally and marketed specifically to their citizens?