An inaugural WIRED Innovation Fellow, Rachel Wingfield co-founded the London based SPatial Laboratory, Loop.pH in 2003 and was the Creative Director from 2003-2020.
A frontierswoman for a new creative field where designers intervene at an urban scale to create new visions for healthy human habitats. She develops collaborative tools for public engagement and multidisciplinary practices, and consults on creative strategies and speculative futures for business and the public sector.
Rachel trained at the Royal College of Art in London and specialised in adaptive, smart materials for the built environment, inspired by the study of living systems. Today Wingfield speculates on near and far future scenarios that explore emerging biological and technological futures by crafting space into visionary transformative experiences and environments.
Her work can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), NY, the V&A Museum, London, Fosters Private Art Collection, Geneva and the Bloomberg Collection, London.
Recent clients include, The Design Museum London, The Pompidou-Metz, The Manchester Science Festival, Burj Al Arab Hotel, Swarovski, Royal Historic Palaces, Bloomberg, Fosters and Partners, Kew Gardens, EDF & Lille3000, Belvedere, BMW & The ICA, Centre of the Cell and the Medical Research Council.
Projects
- Mind PilotLondon Design Festival 2018 September 2018 Mind Pilot is a project led by Rachel Wingfield and commissioned by the Design Museum London Loop.pH were commissioned by the Design Museum to animate the atrium with a new experience called Mind Pilot. The interactive installation allowed visitors to pilot a helium filled airship through the power of mind and controlled breath as they follow a meditation program. Mind Pilot suggests an inclusive future where people with varying physical abilities
- Nike One ShotWHAT: Interactive Installation WHERE: NIKELAB 1984, London WHEN: February - March 2017 CLIENT: Nike My studio Loop.pH was invited by Nike Lab in London to create an interactive installation in response to the game of basketball, of which we knew very little about. My approach was to play and distort the rules, concept of winning and materials of the game. I developed a concept based based on the Japanese philosophy, Wabi-sabi – the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic
- The Horticultural SpaWHERE: The Thames River Path, London WHEN: May 30-31 - June 5-6-7 2015 CLIENT: The Nine Elms Vauxhall Partnership An otherworldly experience on the banks of London’s River Thames in 2015. Conceived and directed by Rachel Wingfield and delivered by Loop.pH. Part greenhouse, part pneumatic bubble, the horticultural spa is a sensory, ephemeral architecture and future spa. The space is inflated and filled with fragrant fog for people to come, stop, breathe and connect. Visitors are immersed in
- OsmoWHAT: Osmo, A beginners guide to constructing the cosmos WHERE: Under the A13 flyover, Canning Town, London WHEN: Saturday 29 Nov 2014 (6pm-12am) “For many inhabitants of big cities like New York and London, a night spent under a sky full of stars is an unlikely event, if not impossible. Skyscraping buildings and inevitable air pollution limits the possibility of even getting a glimpse of the awe-inspiring universe above. [Designboom]”
- The Biological BakeryWHERE: Studio Four, London WHEN: 27 January 2014 CLIENT: Channel 4, Architecture in Helsinki Dream A Little Crazy music video commissioned by Aussie pop band Architecture In Helsinki is a surreal candy–coloured–scientific–circus, that collaborators Lucy McRae and Rachel Wingfield call ‘The Biological Bakery’.
- The ChronariumWHERE: The Cathay, Singapore WHEN: 10 - 15 Oct 2015 CLIENT: FutureEverything Singapore People living today sleep significantly less than generations before with sleep disorders on the rise, costing the economy billions. We are only just beginning to understand the impact that sleep disorders have on people’s lives and society at large. With the quantity and quality of sleep being constantly challenged by round the clock communications and globalised business, it’s becoming increasingly import
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Projects credited in
- EVENT SPEAKER: The Future of_ Wellness by Rachel WingfieldThrough her studio Loop.pH Rachel speculates on near and far future scenarios that explore emerging biological and technological futures. Through crafting spaces, technology and living materials into visionary environments, her work is a call to action for designers to intervene at urban scale and develop collaborative tools for public engagement. Recent projects include a ‘Horticultral Spa’ - a pneumatic bubble inflated with medicinal fog and ‘The Chronarium’ to aid sleep. Rachel is a designer, researcher and educator specialising in responsive environments inspired by the study of living systems. Rachel discussed The Future Of_Wellness at The Future Of_2017 Festival. loop.ph
- 2017 | The Future Of_The Future Of_ is a full day of talks that invites future-shapers to illuminate us with their thoughts on the near and far future. Last year we sold out in 2 weeks and so for 2017 we've doubled our capacity and moved to the heart of Shoreditch at Protein Studios. Starting at 9am and finishing up at 5.30pm, expect a program packed with insights, wonder and unique experiences. Bypassing the ‘middleman’, The Future Of_ is a unique opportunity to directly access the creatives influencing the edges
- The Future Of_ 2017The Future Of_ is a day of talks where we invite future-shapers to share their thoughts on the near and distant future. Get direct access to the creatives who are influencing the edges of tomorrow. For 2017 you'll be taken on a journey where your driverless taxi has been hacked, you can purchase emotions, and chocolate will monitor your health. Last year we sold out in 2 weeks and so we've doubled our capacity and moved to the heart of Shoreditch at Protein Studios. Expect a program packed w17
Work history
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FounderLoop.pH Ltd.
London, United KingdomFull Time
Loop.ph is a spatial laboratory that creates responsive environments inspired by the study of living systems. Wingfield speculates on near and far future scenarios that explore emerging biological and technological futures by crafting space, technology and living materials into visionary experiences and environments.
Senior Lecturer & ResearcherUniversity of The Arts London (UAL)
- London, United KingdomFull Time
Senior Lecturer and acting course director on the MA Design for Textile Futures.
Textile Futures Research: Smart Textiles and a biomimetic exploration of food, energy and metabolism.
Skills
- Creative Direction
- Architectural Design
- Conceptual Designer/marketing