Unpacking Tech - Goblet of Misfortune
- aimantdh
- Apr 13
- 2 min read
During a two-week long workshop called Unpacking Technology, our goal was to take an existing piece of machinery, dismantle it and then reassemble it with a new purpose.
We chose a dysfunctional Rowenta Compact Cyclonic (RO346301), a bagless canister vacuum cleaner designed for domestic dry cleaning. We found this in an e-waste trash can. On dismantling the machine we found that the vacuum is constructed primarily of injection-molded plastics. Chassis: Made of durable ABS plastic to withstand impact and heat. It houses the motor bucket, cord reel, and control electronics.
Week 2 - The Evolution
The exercise wasn’t just to reassembly to make a new machine, but for it to be a paradoxical machine. The concept was simple: the vacuum motor does not merely consume air, it also expels it. The air drawn from one side- has to be released on the other. By inverting our relationship with the machine's motor and using its exhaust rather than suction, the entire logic of the device was reversed.
Combined with the discovery of a conical waste vessel that bore an uncanny resemblance to a the Goblet of Fire from a Harry Potter: we had the idea for the machine - one that uses air to expel air to dispense paper chits bearing misfortunes - activated not by human touch but by human presence.
Component Architecture:
The Experience:
The process is deceptively simple. A user approaches the dome, the goblet senses their presence and starts to glow - a gradual illumination that invites curiosity and primacy. On coming close enough the motor activates releasing shots from within the goblet to burst of air.
But unlike conventional fortune cookies, with fake optimism and vague encouragement, the goblet of misfortune deals in the opposite. The chits carry the pronouncement of bad luck, petty conveniences and existential inconvenience, the parody is the point.
In doing so, it raises a quiet question about the machines we trust - and the futures they claim to offer.
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