Restless Chopsticks Tableware by Marko Stanojevic

Restless Chopsticks Tableware by Marko Stanojevic is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award in Moralo wa Dibakewere, Disebediswa tsa Tafole, Dinoelo le Disebediswa tsa Pheho Competition Category.

BoronseDisebediswa tsa Kitjhine· 2023

Restless Chopsticks Tableware

by Marko Stanojevic

Client: UMA Network Ltd

Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award Winner in Disebediswa tsa Kitjhine Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #145167

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Colors

The Design

About Restless Chopsticks Tableware

Uma ke k'hamphani ea khoebo ea Hong Kong e shebaneng le moruo oa boqapi. Li-chopsticks tse sa tsitsang li entsoe joalo ka ntho ea memento, e emelang boleng ba k'hamphani ba ho tsetela lisebelisoa ho etsa phetoho. Letšoao la k'hamphani le tšoana le pulse moleng o bataletseng, o neng o kenngoe ka har'a chopstick e sephara. Karolo e ka pele ea chopstick e lula e phahamisoa 'me e beoa hole le bokaholimo ba tafole, ho tlosa tlhoko ea ho phomola ha chopstick. Pulse e etselitsoe hore e lule e arohane ka ho lekaneng, hore e se ke ea thulana, 'me e sebetsa hantle bakeng sa ho nka lijo, ho fihlela ho loma tse nyenyane tse boima ka ho fetisisa.

The Recognition

About the Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award

Restless Chopsticks Tableware ke mohapi oa Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award, kananelo e hlomphehang haholo e fuoang meralo e ikhethang e tsejoang ka boqapi, bohlale ba ho qapa le bohlale. Bahapi ba Boronse ke lintho tse nang le bokhoni ka ho felletseng le boqapi bo hlollang tse tiisang boiphihlelo bo bongata, mohopolo le bokhoni ba ho iphumana ba baqapi ba tsona. Restless Chopsticks Tableware e lebelletsoe ho ba ntho e hlomphuoang haholo, e ratoang le e ratehang, e nang le boprofeshenale bo bonahalang le mehopolo e mecha. Moralo ona o hapileng Moputso oa Boronse oa A' Design Award o kenyelletsa mekhoa e metle ka ho fetesisa bonong, mahlaleng, moralong le theknolojing mme o hlahella ka ho tsepamisa maikutlo lintlheng tse nyenyane. Restless Chopsticks Tableware e kutloisisa litlhoko hantle, e ama litakatso, e hapa maikutlo mme e tsosa takatso ea ho tseba.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: The body of a chopstick is divided into sections: one at top is held by hand and the other one at the tip comes in contact with food and mouth, with an overlooked neutral zone between them. This zone is where the design intervention took place - a ‘distancer’ shaped like the company logo (a Pulse on the flat line) was inserted, elevating the tip of the chopstick away from the surface however it dropped down, eliminating the need for a chopstick rest. This is done, regarding the positioning and size, so that the chopsticks remain functional and do not collide when in use.
Dimensions & Packaging: The product is 260mm long, with 7.5mm width at the back end and 3.5 at the front. The Pulse segment itself is 25mm long and 13.5mm wide between the maximum-distance points. This makes the front end always elevated from the surface by a minimum of 5.5mm.
Tags: Tableware, chopsticks, utensils, tradition, narrative design, memento object
Production Technology: The product is made of titanium with bi-color titanium coating (dark gray and gold), all food-grade. Surface is polished in two steps allowing for two finishes.
Design Challenge: It was a challenge to transform an ordinary object, a pair of chopsticks, into a future-proofing tradition and contemporized heritage. Their beautiful simplicity is only disturbed by the fact that a third object is actually needed in the etiquette of how they are used - a chopstick rest. This contradiction of “clean two that actually need a third” to work properly made the design direction clear: find a way for the purpose that the chopstick rest is for to be fulfilled, but without the rest.
Research: Remaining true to East Asian heritage, the Pulse (life) segment is titanium coated in golden color with polished surface finish, while the straight parts (flat line) of the chopstick are titanium coated in matte dark gray with brushed finish to create contrast between the two. Each polishing and titanium-gold coating of the Pulse is on purpose done in a low controlled manner against highly controlled and repetitive-mass-production feel of the brushed, dark-gray flat line parts of the object. Allowing shiny, golden randomness to happen is in tune to the actual beauty of randomness of a real life. Finally, on a very concrete level, it makes each chopstick piece unique and special.
Inspiration: UMA is a Hong Kong venture capital company focused on creative economies. The task was to design a multi-facetted communication object representing the company's values (invest resources to make a change), but also to be able to function independently in a retail environment. A set of chopsticks, iconic and recognizable, culturally relevant, was a chosen as a topic. UMA logo, a Pulse on the flat line, was embedded into a flat-lined chopstick becoming its' functional, aesthetical and communication core, all in one stroke.
Project Duration: Hong Kong SAR, China
Operation Flow: Chopsticks with no rest :)
Patents: UMA Network Limited
Image Credits: UMA Network Limited