Océane Romanet

Department: Man and Well being
Website: oceaneromanet.com

Courant d’Air

‘Courant d’Air’ offers an alternative cooling system by letting water evaporate through porous bricks. The energy used for refrigeration and air conditioning causes greater emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. It turns urban areas into ‘heat islands’, resulting in even more use of cooling technologies; a vicious cycle. Océane Romanet was inspired by traditional terracotta water containers placed in window sills to let the breeze carry cooler air into a room. She has experimented with different degrees of porousness and built a series of architectural elements with her bricks for use as coolants in public space: a bus stop, park shelter and a pavilion.