MSN: Designers make desktop computers and mice out of honey and ice
UC DAAP grads explore regional materials and personal computing in latest project
University of Cincinnati alumni Hank Beyer and Alex Sizemore designed prototype computers from unconventional materials such as ice and honey for a project titled, "For the Rest of Us: A Journey into the Intangible Values of Regional Materials and Personal Computing."
Computer made of sandstone in "For the Rest of Us" by Hank Beyer and Alex Sizemore.
Their work was covered by MSN and Dezeen.
The industrial design duo explored parts of the American Midwest researching eight material origins and their associated processes and history.
Beyer and Sizemore travelled extensively for years, interviewing dozens of people, collecting artifacts and taking pictures. From each material — including coal, clay, even lard — they created a retro desktop computer.
"This project seeks to spur discourse and challenge common preconceptions of materiality and everyday objects by displacing the notion that materials best for industry are best for humanity," according to the artists.
Beyer and Sizemore first began collaborating on projects when they met as students at UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. They studied industrial design in DAAP's Myron E. Ullman, Jr. School of Design.
The pair work together as one studio in California.
Computer made of soil in "For the Rest of Us" by Hank Beyer and Alex Sizemore.
Computer made of ice in "For the Rest of Us" by Hank Beyer and Alex Sizemore.
Computer made of honeycomb in "For the Rest of Us" by Hank Beyer and Alex Sizemore.
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