The Ripple Effect
The Ripple Effect takes its name from the idea that every small action creates consequences – like ripples spreading across water.
The installation brings this to life through a functioning fountain, where water continuously flows and returns, symbolising the limited cycles of nature that we all depend on.
This work, composed of 2,000 ceramic tiles, was created with a clay body containing waste material sourced from the Żelazny Most in southwest Poland – one of Europe’s largest tailings reservoirs. By transforming this discarded material into hand-made tiles, the work invites us to reflect on the hidden costs of extraction and how our consumer choices shape both ecology and society.
Commissioned by the Victoria & Albert Museum and presented at the heart of the Madejski Garden at V&A South Kensington as part of London Design Festival.
Curator: Carrie Chan
Artist's Crew:
Architect: Agata Woźniczka BUD CUD >>link<<
Material assessment: Dr. Eng. Maciej Gruszczyński
Potters: Alicja Patanowska, Leri Papidze
Technical Assistance: Julia Guza
Production: Marcin Baranowski
Support: Polish Cultural Institute, Adam Mickiewicz Institute, ASP Wroclaw
Title: The Ripple Effect
Year: 2025
Material: clay, stoneware, glaze, paint, wood, copper
Technique: original sculptural technique
Part of the project is material research. I explore how mining waste can be reused and turned into ceramic. This change – from waste to something useful and symbolic – opens a way of thinking about value and care.
It also follows William Morris’s idea of craft: working with respect for the material and building social bonds.
One of my inspirations was the craftsmanship of the Meissen table fountain The Triumph of Amphitrite [ Am-fi-TRAI-ti] , made by Joachim Kendler and now in the V&A. It showed human power through nature and was used for washing hands.
In The Ripple Effect hands are also important – I invite people to touch the tiles and reflect. But I want to show something different: that we do not exist without nature. And by nature I also mean earth, water and minerals – treasures that we must value.”
In the end, The Ripple Effect is an invitation – to slow down, to sense the cycles of water and matter, and to recognise that we are all part of this shared organism called Earth.
Photo: Jakub Celej / IAM