A: Is for Arriving at the Future!

I can not believe I missed this exhibit because I am so completely fascinated by this work. French designer Mathieu Lehanneur has created Local River, a concept for a domestic “refrigerator-aquarium” that breeds freshwater fish for eating and grows vegetables at the same time. Inspired by the Locavores movement of people who source food grown locally to avoid pollution and ensure freshness, the project allows people to produce their own food at home. Vegetables growing in floating pots would help purify the water by removing nitrates and other minerals. It was shown at the Artists Space Gallery in New York right up until June 21st. Not only is it art but it is a home storage unit for live freshwater fish combined with a mini vegetable patches. This DIY fish-farm-cum-kitchen-garden is based on the principle of aquaponics coupled with the exchange and interdependence of two living organisms - plants and fish. The plants extract nutrients from the nitrate-rich dejecta of the fish. In doing so they act as a natural filter that purifies the water and maintains a vital balance for the eco-system in which the fish live. The same technique is used on large-scale pioneer aquaponics/fish-farms, which raise tilapia (a food fish from the Far East) and lettuce planted in trays floating on the surface of ponds. Local River responds to everyday needs for fresh food that is 100% traceable. It bets on a return to favour of farm-raised freshwater fish (trout, eel, perch, carp, etc…), given the dwindling supplies of many saltwater species due to over-fishing. It also demonstrates the capacity of fish-farmers to deliver their stock live to a private consumer as a guarantee of optimum freshness - impossible in the case of saltwater fish that has been netted. Local River aims to replace the decorative ‘TV aquarium’ by an equally decorative but also functional ‘refrigerator-aquarium’. In this scenario, fish and greens cohabit for a short time in a home storage unit before being eaten by their keepers, the end-players in an exchange cycle within a controlled ecosystem.

Mathieu Lehanneur the designer is currently exploring possibilities in nature and technology for their break-thru potential in functions and their capacity to work magic. Making his international début with a series entitled ‘Elements’ and the ‘Bel Air’ filtering system for plants. Six objects that form a domestic kit for rebalancing everyday physiological needs (such as lack of sunlight in winter) and countering aggression factors in urban settings (noise & air pollution). Go to www.mathieulehanneur.com because this artist is truly thinking towards the future and that is a needed F.A.C.T.