This project started during a conversation in one of the weekly coffee sessions organised by the collective “Take a way” in 2022 in the Tarwewijk, Rotterdam south. It is a project with a clear start, but no clear end.

With the main idea that coffee and Tea are “elements” that we use in our daily routine to establish relationships and create friendships, we explored that there are multiple rituals around them depending on where we come from. Considering the multicultural background of the member of the collective we mainly aimed to design and build an element that could be represent all of us, be transported around the city and used by anyone.

During the exploratory process three workshops were organised to approach colours, patterns and three-dimensionality to collect ideas on how to approach the design incorporating everyone’s input and find ways on how the participants could participate in the construction process.

Project process video:

The final design was thought in a modular system composed by individual panels, similar to a white canvass, where participants could create their own paintings making every piece unique. While the personalised panels face the interior side, the outside is all painted in light blue wrapping up a wooden structure capable of fitting and carrying the load of the equipments needed.

The car is equipped with drawers to store the coffee cups, extendable surfaces to make preparations and a flexible wooden structure for the merchandise making it a complete for a quick pop-up session. As the sessions start and the coffee cart opens it brings life with its colours and patterns. It has been used in festivals in Rotterdam, markets, exhibitions and sessions in which the participants form different countries share their rituals around the coffee and tea.

During the construction process many participants joined the sessions and everyone had their own input in different parts of the process, in what a satisfactory result in which the main stress was marked by the fact that the members of the collective would not feel represented by the final design; however it was achieved.

Year:
2022-2023
Location:
Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Client:
Collective Take a way
Program:
Movable urban element
Size:
2 m²
Status:
Completed and in use
Design team:
Andrés López
Construction:
Andrés López and Collective take a way
Collaborator:
Annika Bremmer