Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria by George Drakakis

Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria by George Drakakis is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2015 Praemium A' Design Award Argenteum in Instrumenta Culinae Competition Category.

ArgentumInstrumenta Culinae· 2015

Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria

by George Drakakis

Client: Iconpoetry

Praemium A' Design Award Argenteum Winner in Instrumenta Culinae Category

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Verified Award Winner
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The Design

About Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria

Epi-Happy est ornamentum medium parvum pro mensis officiorum mensisque cenariis futuri temporis. Fundamentum inspirans - translatio motivorum ornamentalium in spatium trium dimensionum - id efficit rem elegantem classicam simulque modernam. Repetitio triplex unitatis fundamentalis spatium continuum recondendi creat quod plura objecta parva recondere vel ostendere potest. Continuitas spatii etiam efficit ut retinaculum funiculorum agat, vel statim in instrumentum ad anxietatem mitigandam transformari potest. Modo pilam iace et eam circumvolvere conare. Omni ex parte, Epi-Happy est occupator spatii amicus.

The Recognition

About the Praemium A' Design Award Argenteum

Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria victor est Praemii A' Design Award Argenteum, honoris eximie amplissimi formis summi generis, pulchris et conspicuis dati. Victores Argenti opera valde splendida et creandi ingenio praedita sunt, quae praestantem peritiam, talentum et acumen auctorum suorum ostendunt. Exspectatur Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria opus mirabile, exemplare, valde professionale et penitus novum fore. Haec forma Argento victa inventum notabile et admiratum est, quod ad fines artis, scientiae, formandi rationis et technologiae promovendos confert. Epi-Happy Vasa Mensaria creatio est, quam multi invident, quae cupiditates excitat, sensus bonos affert et admirationem miraculumque movet.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Epi-Happy is a small centerpiece for a dinner table or an office desk. The inspirational background -a translation in three dimensional space of ornamental motifs- make it a classic yet a contemporary stylish object with smooth lines and a funny playful mood. A triple repetition of a basic unit creates a continuous storage area that can store or display several small objects, varying from small fruits and ornaments to keys and usb devices. Epi-Happy is a friendly space occupant. The empty space in the center of the centerpiece has the advantage of being used in addition to an already-existing centerpiece, be it a vase of flowers, a candle holder or anything that fits in. Of course you can just throw a ball in it and try to roll it round and round. This way Epi-Happy can act as an anti-stress device for adults or became a game to practice dexterity for minors.
Dimensions & Packaging: Width mm x Depth mm x Height mm = 180 x 180 x 56mm
Tags: tableware, decorative, office desk, centerpiece, centrepiece
Production Technology: The Basic Unit will be slip-cast (produced from liquid clay in plaster mold) and will be produced in White Ceramic material. The cast piece will be removed from the mold, then trimmed neatly and allowed to dry. This produces a greenware piece which is then dried and glazed before firing the units into a kiln. If possible, during the drying process, the units will be connected to form the final shape, else, the units will be connected to each other with Alnico V or Ceramic cylindrical shaped magnets. The pole pieces will be recessed in the edges of each Unit.
Design Challenge: The challenge was to create a complex continuous surface using a single element with a simple form that’s easy to reproduce.
Research: This design is a study on the slip-casting ceramic fabrication method used for manufacturing complex continuous three-dimensional geometrical defined forms that can be materialized easily once they are made of a repeatable basic unit.
Inspiration: This design is heavily influenced by the works of M.C. Escher on one-sided surfaces, firstly discovered by A.F. Mobius and inspired from two-dimensional repeatable decorative patterns and the hidden mathematical theorem underneath them. Decoration and ornament pattern has been evident in civilizations since the beginning of recorded history mostly as surface modulations. Despite the fact of the apparent lack of ornaments of 20th century modern architecture and applied arts, Epi-Happy is here to remind that these kind of patterns are a tremendous source of inspiration: Geometrically speaking Epi-Happy (hence the name) is the trace of the trajectory of an epicycloid in three-dimensional space.
Project Duration: The project started in October 2013 in Thessaloniki and finished in January 2014.
Operation Flow: Three Units assembled in place with magnetic force, or pre-assembled during manufacturing process, form a continuous storage space for domestic or office usage. The Basic Unit can have alternative side endings, so dividing the continuous space in half or thirds is also possible.
Image Credits: Image #1: Architect George Drakakis, Epi-Happy, 2014.
Image #2: Architect George Drakakis, Epi-Happy, 2014.
Image #3: Architect George Drakakis, Epi-Happy, 2014.
Image #4: Architect George Drakakis, Epi-Happy, 2014.
Image #5: Architect George Drakakis, Epi-Happy, 2014.