photo: andrea bandoni & joana meroz

designers andrea bandoni and joana meroz created 'the archetypical vase' to question the idea of creating
and understanding objects through textual language. the design is part of their project 'the object without
a story' which the two brazilian designers based in the netherlands explored together. the two analysed
hundred of stories accompanying design objects and picked out common words and expressions to create
new stories for non-existing objects. one of these non-existent objects was ‘the archetypical vase’, which
they created in glass. 'the proposal is that instead of an object being monopolized by the 'official' story,
it can be the starting point for multiple interpretations.' the vase was made by stichting glas leerdam in the
netherlands using moulded and mouth-blown glass. the vase measures 35cm by 35cm and will be on
shown at the frozen fountain in amsterdam beginning september 19th. you can read some of the stories
that could explain 'the archetypical vase' below.

joana meroz was a participant in designboom's handled with care exhibition, back in 2007.

http://www.abandoni.net
http://www.joanameroz.com


photo: susana camara leret

these are some of the stories that could explain ‘the achetypical vase’:

the archetypical vase – story #1
the archetypalvase communicates its complex and fascinating history to the user by being molded by
different  transparent  layers of classical  vase forms. the different silhouettes of the different layers of
vases compose the ornamentation. the fact that the interior cavity refers to a womb and the external
suggests  a funerary urn refers to the cycles of life and death of the vessels themselves.
 
the archetypical vase – story #2
the apparition of this vase first came in a fascinating yet disturbing dream: it was at the same time the
child waiting to be born as well as being the very container of the child. the visceral image of an
object pregnant with self-similar offspring transcends rational discourse. the archetypical vase’s
sensual and feminine forms spin tales of creation, simultaneously capturing interpretations of the
past and generating new myths for the future.
 
the archetypical vase – story #3
the different kinds of fine balancing acts involved in the process of mouth-blown glass was the
starting point for the archetypical vase. in order to create each shape different techniques and
considerations are involved. this allows for the exploration of the range of virtuosity of the
mouth-blower, his ability in mastering different aspects of the craft directly resulting in the
stylistic differences between each of the vases. the archetypical vase is a tribute to the
accumulation of hundreds of years of experience involved in this ancient and fertile craft.

the archetypical vase – story #4
the archetypical vase is a collaboration between andrea bandoni and joana meroz. having made
an in-depth analysis of hundred of stories accompanying design objects, they used the most
significant words and expressions to create random stories. the designers then created the objects
described by these random stories, one of which is the archetypical vase. although the stories
sound coherent, they are in fact completely arbitrary, thus questioning the validity of creating
and understanding objects through stories.


photo: andrea bandoni & joana meroz


photo: andrea bandoni & joana meroz


photo: andrea bandoni & joana meroz


photo: andrea bandoni & joana meroz