MFA DESIGN SHOWCASE, CCA, 2024
ONGOING RESEARCH
2024–PRESENT
Originally developed for the CCA MFA Design Showcase, Olla Adaptación continues as an ongoing research project exploring ceramics, water stewardship, ecological systems, and adaptive forms through iterative design and material experimentation.
Olla Adaptación is a functional provocation—an invitation to rethink our relationship with soil and water through ecological design and material exploration. This self-irrigating ceramic system, partially buried in the earth, channels moisture to dry soils and plant roots, acting as a bridge between human intention and environmental response.
Inspired by biomimicry, its surface draws from hydrophilic and hydrophobic strategies found in desert beetles that harvest atmospheric moisture. At the same time, the project looks to ancestral irrigation practices as a source of knowledge for addressing contemporary environmental challenges.
Rather than a finished solution, Olla Adaptación serves as an ongoing platform for experimentation and learning. Through evolving forms, prototypes, and material studies, the project explores how ceramics can support soil health, water conservation, and more resilient relationships between people, land, and the ecosystems that sustain them.
