beautiful objects.

"a thing of beauty is a joy forever:

its loveliness increases;

it will never pass into nothingness."
[john keats]

i had a conversation with a friend this morning. we were on the ferry from uni teaching to office work, so there was a sense of lightness on the water. it was one of those conversations that twirl from topic to topic, like a tasmanian narrative, with tangents galore: the best kind of conversation. he always worries that he is not well read enough. which is ridiculous, because he can argue with theories. so I tell him, “oh! stop being so silly!”

the topic that has lingered in my mind was about the handmade receptacle as an object of infinite beauty. the conversation thread was unravelled + shaped, and eventually evolved into ideas of a disposable society.

so where did it begin? a few years ago, i was lucky enough to attend a summer design school with richard leplastrier + peter stutchbury - two architects i hold in very high regard. ric shared his thoughts on the 'beautiful object'. this is a loaded term, and open to interpretation. it was about simplicity in design. he gently cradled a handmade bowl in his hands. its imperfections made it more beautiful. the concept of wabi sabi came into my conscience. at that moment, so many things made sense. his thoughts on the object slipped into my being + reaffirmed early thoughts.

[photo | saurabh tewari]

years before, at varanasi train station, i fell deeply in love with a clay chai cup. the shape, the colour, the texture, the delicacy, the aroma, the imperfections of the handmade object. perhaps it was further heightened by the ritual of receiving the cup, wrapping your hands around it, drinking the sweet liquid + finally letting the cup fall from your hands, to smash into fragments + splinters on the floor. disposable object. a strange concept in a society which is known for its poverty. and so the conversation continued...

it says something about the impermanent nature of the material world.