Design | Studio Esrawe Creates “Fold” to blend Ceramics and Elasticity

MEXICO CITY — These fabulous pictures come to us from a recent exhibition of design by Mexico City studio Esrawe. Developed in collaboration with Merkki, the Fold collection was installed in grand style at the National Museum of Art in what appears to be a ballroom. We love how closely the finished works match the decor of the room!

According to designboom, the works are a “conceptual exercise” that seeks to combine the typically rigid, brittle artform of ceramics with a sense of elasticity. They state that the pieces are “the physical representation of a sequence of actions; the object transforms both aesthetically and functionally. The development starts with the basic shape of a cylinder…”

As you can see from this series of images there’s a metamorphosis going on, even though the iterations share a common genetic ancestor. The shapes start with a simple vase but then transform until they become plates. At the far end of the spectrum, they swell and grow until they take on the look of serving bowls. It’s one unbroken thread from end to end.

Esrawe Studio is a cross-disciplinary design office located in Mexico City, whose aim is to develop furniture and interior design solutions for bars, restaurants, hotels, offices, houses and commercial spaces, the studio writes in their artist statement.

The team is comprised of experienced designers, architects, production engineers and IT engineers, as well as a team of manufacturing specialists whose main goal is to assure that every one of the studio’s products is optimally crafted—from conceptualization to the finishing stages. The presence of the studio’s creative essence is evident throughout the entire process; a process perfected each and every day so as to offer new concepts and custom-made furniture pieces.

At Esrawe Studio, design is a living process of dialogue, linking the users with their surroundings. It’s all about feeling the evolution of design, which stems from an understanding of basic physical and emotional needs of a given moment, and in a given context.

Do you love or loathe this experiment in contemporary ceramics? Let us know in the comments.

Photographs by Jaime Navarro.