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Malleable Table
Project Details
PARTNER: Thorp Design
PROJECT: The Malleable Table
DATE: June 2017
As part of our A Home For All installation in the Ultralounge at Selfridges, we worked with ceramic artist Matthew Raw to create a raw clay table and dining experience. This interactive feast used three meters of soft clay as a canvas, capturing the expression of eating, connecting and gathering.
Assembled around the table, 12 guests feasted. Whilst they ate and conversed, they made impressions in the clay. Over the course of the evening arms, glasses, plates and cutlery left their marks, resulting in a rich pattern of use.
By the end of the evening, a collection of touches and dents were visible, creating a physical manifestation of the feast, and an impression of the connections therein.
After the meal, the length of clay was partitioned into slabs and transported back to Matthew’s studio. There, experimenting with different colours and viscosity, the tiles were glazed to create a permanent record of the gathering.
Outcome
Having captured the imagination of interior design studio - Thorp Design - the tiles were transformed into a 3.4m sculptural table for a high-end residential project under the direction of the developers Tenhurst. Collaborating with furniture designer Sebastian Cox, we designed an empathetic structure using sycamore - creating both a functional table and a living artwork.
To find out more about our creative installations and collaborations, and how you can enlist the minds and techniques of our makers into your projects, please email Kate Collins at [email protected]aftsmen.com to make an appointment.