ceramics

well, we were chatting earlier about working together to create a "line" of ceramic products cast from existing objects; as a design excercise. to rehash, and add to, the conversation from earlier i'm going to get started.

the first thing to do is establish a thematic course. while we do not need to limit what type of objects, or how we re-purpose them, it might be valuable to explore the different methods that are being employed around the design world.

i see a few main categories of ceramic products that re-purpose existing objects.

1. purely aesthetic. there are plenty of objects that are simply a cast version of an everyday object for decorative purposes. sure, there is a discussion about "removing function" as a function, art drivel. but in effect, they are just pretty objects to put on the shelf or mount on the wall.




ricochet design studio's "sharpener"
http://www.ricochetstudio.blogspot.com/



2. obvious function. these designs take one object, cast it in ceramic, and simply re-purpose it for an obvious function. one vessel become a different kind of vessel, etc.






daniel reynolds
http://www.reynoldsware.co.uk
(of course, this almost also fits in cat. 3)





3. the same function. this is the category name that i'm giving to objects, that even though sometimes interesting, do not fundamentally change what it is that the object does. the major player in here are the cast ceramic doppelgangers of disposable items. while that was really neat the first time i saw it, it seems odd that every time it happens again it continues to get "press."






a bunch of stuff from uncommon goods
http://www.uncommongoods.com/
(if you know this site, you know that by the time something is for sale there it is no longer a new idea)






4. holy crap, a new function. this is a wide array of things. i could have divided this into several, but i'll leave it as one category. this includes concepts that change the function from that which we visually assume from the form of the object, functions that counter the intuitive ideas of the nature of the object, or any other way in which a truly new function is added. not a change in the process of that function (disposable to permanent) but a functional relationship with some other thing that was not there before.









"3 gun vase" from suck uk
http://www.suck.uk.com
(i know, sticking flowers in a hole isn't an amazing functional innovation...but look how neat this looks...it's guns, in porecelin...ohhh.)



5. a new object. fun, rare, hard to define. this could be an assembly of parts to create a new collage/object, the distortion to the point of new identity, or a retooling of both functionality and appearance. hard to define, harder to create. since the constant in these categories is the re-purposing of existing objects the creation of something that is aesthetically and functionally new stands as a pinnacle of success.



ricochet design studio's "shelf/clamp"
http://www.ricochetstudio.blogspot.com/
(can you tell that i like them?)




6. i'm leaving this blank so we can fill it in when we think of the completely blatant category that i forgot.

for no other reason that to offer different directions, hopefully this was useful. there is of course, plenty that can be expounded upon (aesthetic objects come in the adorned, unadorned, etc.) but i think basics are useful.

what is our first step. left to my own devices i will come up with 14 items that have absolutely no common element...that seems to defy the purpose of this exercise. your thoughts?

ps. after making this...this "blogger" format...could it be crappier? the formatting of this? looks great in the little "editing" box. once in the preview? hell. getting photos in here? pain the ass. preview then back to editing? adds all the html garbage i don't understand. poops to this. since this project is new can we migrate somewhere else to a better platform?