Ekateryna Sokolova from Kiev, Ukraine has thought a lot about water. The liquid does make up anywhere from 55 to 78% of our total body weight. Our planet boasts high numbers of the stuff as well: the earth is covered by 71% ocean water. Another interesting fact about water: although we need it, we can suffer water intoxication. Industrial designer Sokolova is more interested in its movement: “Water strives for freedom, it dictates the form justified by its natural desire of a whirlpool creation and flowing down freely.” Given water’s longing, Sokolova has conceived of an appropriate washbasin called Aqua Vita.

Aqua Vita. Designed by Sokolova

Intended to be constructed from sheet material such as Thermowood, Corian, or metal, Aqua Vita mimics the widening gyre that water wants to follow, if it had its way. Beginning with a wide bowl shape and narrowing to a thin base, the washbasin echoes the manner in which water travels, turning in circles before giving way to falling. And water does always circle. The spiraling is indeed captivating, and Sokolova’s washbasin capitalizes on this beauty. Perhaps the designer was inspired by the flowing waters of the Dnieper and Dniester Rivers, which flow into the Black Sea. And the dramatic verticality of Aqua Vita’s narrow base may have been influenced by the Carpathian Mountains (made famous by Bram Stoker’s classic novel Dracula—a factoid that might come in handy should you ever land yourself on Jeopardy!).