Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 140, Factory Ceramics

Foam Bowl

Bowl
1997 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

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 or foam, 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 foam 'bowl' is taken and dipped in liquid porcelain clay. After drying, the porcelain-impregnated foam 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'.


Object details

Category
Object type
TitleFoam Bowl
Materials and techniques
Hard-paste porcelain
Brief description
Foam Bowl, unglazed porcelain cast from artificial foam, designed by Marcel Wanders in 1997 for Droog Design, in collaboration with Rosenthal AG, made by Moooi
Physical description
Porcelain 'foam' bowl.
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 20.2cm
Credit line
Given by Marcel Wanders and Moooi
Summary
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 or foam, 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 foam 'bowl' is taken and dipped in liquid porcelain clay. After drying, the porcelain-impregnated foam 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'.
Collection
Accession number
C.132-2009

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Record createdJuly 15, 2009
Record URL
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