When most people pour water or coffee, they don't analyze the liquids' container. Ohio University graduate student Nicholas Bivins, however, spent the past year working on
just that.
The objects that we use the most
especially with the daily needs of food and consumption is a valuable opportunity where I can enhance the daily experience ... (and find) the role these objects play in our lives Bivins said.
Bivins' graduate thesis ceramics exhibition f(x)
which opens today, showcases 10 different sets of items generally used for food and beverage consumption. The sets include a multiple-course dinner set for four, a coffee set for six and a liquor set for home and to go including a flask, Bivins said.
The ultimate goal of my work is to recover this kind of vitality in daily life through a simultaneous mental and physical engagement with unique and functional objects
Bivins said.
Bivins likens the functionality of these items to an apartment building.
In a condominium building
every apartment is exactly the same
but we can only identify who lives where by what you put into it
he said. If you walk in one place and see toys all over the place
you start to talk about family. ... If you see African masks and Chinese pottery
this person is probably a traveler.
Bivins will also dispute the traditional idea of a cup by focusing on creating angular, geometric handles.
I want to challenge some of our preconceptions with comfort ... (and) take on a big question of redefining what we see as usable and comfortable
Bivins said.
(The handles) don't look comfortable
