Sponge Vase

Marcel Wanders (b. 1963, Boxtel, The Netherlands) was among the original members of the Droog (Dutch 'dry', as in wit) collective of Dutch conceptual designers founded in Amsterdam in 1993. He subsequently founded his own independent studio in 1995 as 'Marcel Wonders', and later 'Marcel Wanders'. In 1995, Droog decided to initiate new work by liaising with the Delft University to experiment with new materials on the Dry Tech I and II projects and later the Dry Bathing collection of bathroom products. Droog then began work on its first collaborative project with a private sector partner in 1997 by developing a collection of ceramics with Rosenthal, the German porcelain manufacturer.

One of these pieces was the white Sponge Vase modelled by Wanders on a natural sponge. Organic shapes, like natural sponges, are very difficult shapes to achieve in porcelain using traditional moulds, so he developed a way of producing porcelains without them. In this case, the natural sponge is taken and dipped in liquid porcelain clay. After drying, the porcelain-impregnated sponge is cured in a regular ceramic oven. The sponge burns away, leaving a perfect copy of its fine shapes. In this way, Wanders created a series of shapes that are both industrially reproducible and individual, and which also show off the best that the porcelain maker's art has to offer.

Moooi designs and produces their modern lighting and contemporary furniture in the Netherlands: the Dutch word for 'beautiful' is 'mooi'.