Inspired by the idea that small changes of individual objects can be a big impact on the whole, Korean designers Seo Jeonghwa and Hanna Chung have collaborated the ‘ripple effect’ tea table that features a water layer on the top to make ripples when the users move cups on it. This table is a graduation project for IM masters design academy eindhoven.

There is a belief by Asian people that small changes in an individual’s life can have an impact and have a certain effect to the whole community, which in a psychological term is called a “ripple effect”. The designers then translated this intangible term into their design by creating this tea table. Its basically looks like a common tea table but with the addition of a water layer on top. Tea plates are afloat on this water layer while drinking tea. Ripples from the top water layer then forms every time the tea drinkers interact with their tea cups or their tea plates. – Via – DB











I know this is daft question, but does it mean the table top is wet? It can’t be very pleasant to use that table, then? It looks nice on the pics and the philosophy behind sounds good, but it doesn’t convince me at all.
@minnie – There is water on the table. As you can see this was just a project …in practice I also don’t think it would be a very good idea.
Thanks for your comment.
absolutely nice design.
wow, reminds me of the matrix… even though this is a completely unusable table, and just a concept, it looks super cool! perhaps one day we can see something like this actually work while staying dry!