soft-geometry Turns Indian Thalis Into Mirrors
A testament to cultural reverence and expanded design.
Collaborative design studio, soft-geometry is subverting the Indian thali, by turning them into mirrors.
For the latest offering, the studio’s founders, Utharaa L Zacharias and Palaash Chaudhary look to their own culture to reimagine the steel dinner plate. Entitled “Mirrors for Aliens” the collection juxtaposes the founders’ roots in India although they currently work in the United States on visas. By looking at transient identities, “Mirrors for Aliens” posits a wider discussion on both culture and the multifaceted nature of design. The collection sees the thali in its truest form – with its shiny, segmented sections. The steel plate has then been polished to receive a mirror-like finish.
“In ‘Mirrors for Aliens,’ the thali of our childhood homes acts as an iconic marker of our Indian-ness, humble yet aspirational, and of our Indian futures – simultaneously shiny and faint,” said Zacharias. “The mirrored steel offers slightly distorted, soft reflections that speak to our blurred sense of identity and the complex emotional landscape that comes with living between cultures, countries, home and work.”
Take a look at the piece in the gallery above. Starting at $800 USD, soft-geometry’s “Mirrors for Aliens” collection is available now online.
In other design news, Victor B. Ortiz envisions Brazil’s largest private tennis court.
