Untitled / ‘Kitchen’
Can you tell what this object is for?
Does it matter?
This object has been here laying on the center table in our workshop, that we actually refer to as our kitchen.
A very rough finish, all in one piece, one material: black steel.
From one end, its shape reminds us of scooping, only scooping and not spooning. From the other, quiet a sharp end that could pierce through easily. 17.9 cm long, with two extremes elevated from the surface of the table. Moving from a smooth circular section to elliptical then totally flatten through a hammering process, leaving the edge as rough as it is thin.
For us this object is existing as an expression of the process of its creation.
Furthermore, its placement on the central table between other objects has erased the boundaries between the object and its function, allocating to it a totally new function by every visitor.
Rana Haddad &
Pascal Hachem
Starting from their fascination with their city Rana Haddad and Pascal Hachem co-founded design studio 200 Grs. with the vision of a practice that positively fuels and maintains alive their city, Beirut. Their work learns from the region’s geographic richness and artisanal knowhow for the production of bespoke pieces that challenge spatial constraints and address social trends through the ingenuity of their design. Each of their items is authentic, a unique manifestation of the concepts of materiality, elasticity, tension and balance that bring into play Lebanese local craftsmanship and artisanal skill that are at a risk of disappearing. Their choice of collaboration with local makers in a conscious attempt to revive artisanal practices and support craft's economy. Growing up in a city that taught them to live at a time, Haddad and Hachem create items made to perform in the same manner, to generate an emotional and ergonomic relationship with its end-user.
Recently the Victoria and Albert Museum, V&A in London, UK; acquired from 200Grs the ‘Stuck Stick’ series.
