Mapu Speakers
The world's first active loudspeakers made of clay and other eco-efficient materials.
How does it work?
The Mapu Speakers project is focused on promoting a sustainable and eco-efficient approach to consumption and production. We aim to revive traditional handcrafts and bring back protagonism to these cultural heritage art forms. The loudspeakers are made from low-impact materials like clay, wood, wool, and cork and use state-of-the-art amplification technology from Denmark combined with ancestral craft techniques from Portugal. The project looks to minimize the impact of mass production by using alternative materials, collaborating with small workshops and communities, and reducing transportation routes. Mapu Speakers are a fusion of past, present and future, and a bridge between ancestral knowledge and technology with a vision to preserve cultural heritage and traditions in an industrialised world.
Why is it needed?
We aim to bring together crafts and technology in a unique and disruptive way, reuniting two disciplines that have been moving apart since industrialisation. Our project offers an eco-efficient, socially, and culturally sustainable alternative to the high-tech market, which is not currently addressing the urgency of creating solutions in line with the climate crisis. Mapu Speakers serve as an example of design's role and importance towards creating a more sustainable and fair future. Its aesthetic appeal, combined with high-quality sound, makes it a desirable product that promotes traditional artisanal heritage and local communities. The project is not just a product, but a statement that change is possible and necessary in the consumer electronics industry. It is a step towards a more sustainable future, where technology and artisanal heritage can coexist and complement each other.
How does it improve life?
It create an aesthetic and high-quality experience for people, combining design, positive emotions, and cultural benefits. Achieved through a focus on traditional craftsmanship, using local and eco-friendly materials, co-designing with local communities, and creating unique, handmade pieces. By incorporating cultural heritage and regional aesthetics, the Mapu Speakers have been able to evoke emotions of nostalgia and pride in the engaged communities. We want to change the way we are consuming and producing nowadays by collaborating with communities of artisans. To co-design, integrating local knowledge, skills, traditions and materials, encouraging the transfer of knowledge between generations and creating a sense of purpose for communities in their craft, and belonging in their traditions. Through our products we aim to re- integrate crafts in global markets and decentralise industrial production in non industrial, less developed regions.