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It's a Metaphor Tabili by Emanuele Di Bacco

It's a Metaphor Tabili by Emanuele Di Bacco is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2020 Àmì-ẹ̀yẹ Idẹ A' Design Award in Àpẹẹrẹ Ohun-èlò Ilé Competition Category.


IdẹOhun-èlò Ilé· 2020

It's a Metaphor Tabili

by Emanuele Di Bacco

Client: Gladstone London

Àmì-ẹ̀yẹ Idẹ A' Design Award Winner in Ohun-èlò Ilé Category

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Colors

The Design

About It's a Metaphor Tabili

Ise agbese yii n ṣe igbadun ni ararẹ lakoko igbega igbega awujọ lori imudogba ọkunrin. Ni pataki, o nlo afiwe kan ti o ṣan lati sumo, ọkan ninu awọn ere idaraya ti o jẹ akọ julọ ti ọkunrin ni awujọ Japanese. Wọn ko gba awọn obinrin laaye lati dije ipo elere ni idaraya yii ti o fun awọn ofin ibalopọ, eyiti o fi opin si wọn ni ita iwọn jijakadi nitori abajade aimọ wọn nipasẹ idi ẹjẹ oṣu. Kikọja jagunjagun sumo kan si ilẹ, ni iṣẹ ti ikoko ododo tabi eyikeyi miiran ti eniyan nilo le ni, desecrates pe macho-domino sumo si tun mu dani, nipa lilo irony ati apanilẹrin lasan.

The Recognition

About the Àmì-ẹ̀yẹ Idẹ A' Design Award

It's a Metaphor Tabili jẹ́ olùborí Àmì-ẹ̀yẹ Idẹ A' Design Award, ìdánimọ̀ olókìkí gan-an tí a fún àwọn àwòṣe tó tayọ tí wọ́n yàtọ̀ nípasẹ̀ ìṣẹ̀dá, àrékérekè àti ọgbọ́n inú. Àwọn olùborí Idẹ jẹ́ àwọn ohun èlò tó ní ìjáfáfá gan-an tí wọ́n sì ní ìṣẹ̀dá tó yani lẹ́nu tí wọ́n ń ṣe ẹ̀rí ìrírí gbígbòòrò, ìrònú àti ọgbọ́n àwọn olùṣàwòṣe wọn. A retí pé It's a Metaphor Tabili yóò jẹ́ ohun tí a kà sí gidigidi, tí a gbóríyìn fún tí a sì nífẹ̀ẹ́, tó jẹ́ ti ọ̀jáfáfá lọ́nà tó ṣe pàtàkì tó sì ní ìmúṣẹ̀dá tuntun. Àwòṣe tó borí Àmì-ẹ̀yẹ Idẹ A' Design Award yìí ń kó àwọn ọ̀nà tó dára jùlọ nínú iṣẹ́ ọnà, sáyẹ́ǹsì, àwòṣe àti ìmọ̀-ẹ̀rọ jọ, ó sì tayọ nítorí àfiyèsí rẹ̀ sí àwọn àlàyé kékeré. It's a Metaphor Tabili ń tẹ́ àwọn ohun tí a nílò lọ́rùn lọ́nà àgbàyanu, ó ń fọwọ́ kan àwọn ìfẹ́ inú, ó ń gbà ọkàn ó sì ń fa ìfẹ́ láti mọ̀ mọ́ra.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties
This is a furniture product able to speak and provoke, challenging with irony and a clumsy smile unethical behaviors of our times.
Dimensions & Packaging
Measures are in mm.

Glass platform ø: 1800 / Glass platform thickness: 10 / Body with: 850 / Body height: 750 / Body depth: 1000
Tags
table, social design, equality of the sexes, Japan, sumo
Production Technology
3D-printed assembled object. It can be produced either way with Eco-friendly 3D-printed Poly Lactic Acid filaments or carbon fibers. The structure is divided in multiparts, hand refined and assembled. Successively the whole body is glazed by immersion and finished with a vitreous enamel coating.
A round tempered glass is based on the structure and secured using discreet clear glass high-grip bumpers, specifically designed for the purpose.

The structural analysis take into consideration the chosen materials and the multipart splitting process, where every cut and internal printed reinforcements are made to dump and sustain the weight the structure will go through.
Design Challenge
The creative challenge of this project is to combine the practical function of a furniture piece and communication contents as a means of social commitment. Sumo wrestlers are so well regarded and revered in society to be almost considered as macho semi-gods in their country; placing one of them in a conscious submissive position -grateful and happy to help others- wishes to rebalance a more male-dominated thinking to a non-discriminatory one.
Research
The main focus of this project -together with many pieces produced by our design studio- is to raise awareness about social rights and equal opportunity. Specifically, the target of our research was speaking about the equality of the sexes without being moralistic or patronising; in order to do this we chose to use irony and humour, two powerful rhetorical devices to convey a disputed concept without too much bloodshed.
Inspiration
"The piece of wood came alive and it was able to speak". That's pretty much what happened to Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio; likewise, adding communication contents to a product, gives this object an identity and the ability to speak to people.
This project is poking fun at itself while aim to raise social awareness on equality of the sexes. Specifically, it uses a metaphor which springs from sumo, one of the most male dominated sport in the Japanese society. Women are not allowed to compete professionally in this sport given sexist rules, which by tradition border them outside the wrestling ring as a result of their "impurity" by reason of the menstrual blood.
Knocking a sumo warrior to the ground at the service of a flower pot -or any other need people may require from a table- ironically desecrates this macho dominance still present in some traditions.
Project Duration
The project has started in December 2019 in London and finished, as it is shown, in February 2020. Currently, the table has a unique prototype and will be ready to be produced and launched serially in May 2020.
Operation Flow
A table which can hosts up to 10 seaters. Ideal to be placed wherever an open minded spirit is at home.
Patents
Copyrights belong to Emanuele Di Bacco
Team Members
Emanuele Di Bacco
Image Credits
Emanuele Di Bacco all Rights Reserved

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