Image: http://www.zhulong.com
Architect Chang Yung Ho, who is perhaps better known for setting up China’s first private architecture firm Atelier FCJZ, has designed a series of ceramic dining ware derived from the form of a gourd.
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
The design of the dining ware is inspired by the use of dried gourds as vessels for scooping water and/or rice by farmers in Northern China.
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
It is also a word play on the Chinese saying “to draw a ladle using a gourd (依葫芦画瓢)”, which is used to describe a rigid and inflexible person.
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
Ho takes the proverb literally by using the gourd as the prototype for the dining wares, which are essentially vessels for food. To achieve the formal variations of the different items, he experimented with cutting the gourd at different angles.
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
In doing so, Ho proves that being obvious is not superficial, and that the literal can also be profound. What results is a series of design that is both prosaic and poetic, giving a contemporary twist to the tradition of Chinese farmers.
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
Image: http://www.zhulong.com
Chang Yung Ho is the principle architect of Atelier FCJZ, China’s first private architecture firm. He is currently the Professor of Architecture and the Head of the Department of Architecture at MIT, and used to serve as the Kenzo Tange Chair Professor at Graduate School of Design, Harvard University.
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