Chai from a clay cup -
that raw, astringent taste of earth, mixed with gingery-sweet-milky
tea…Is the taste of India. What is the
taste of Scandinavia?
MY INSPIRATION
The project started
when I came across the traditional Indian Chai cup. It is made of
red Indian clay, lightly fired, rough and unglazed. It leaves the tea with a
gritty taste of clay, described as the taste of mother India. After use they
threw the cup on the ground, where it crumbled in the heat of the sun and the
wet rain. Indian clay returned to Indian soil. Today many have switched to
using plastic cups, but they still throw the cup on the ground after use. It
gives a lot of waste and the beautiful story disappears. I will bring the story
of the little cup back and design a sustainable Chai cup.
The set is wheel
turned stoneware in three different colors and shows The Scandinavian soil. It
is glazed inside to be durable and symbolize the wet inside of the traditional
cup. The cups are made in two sizes. A small cup of Chai and a large cup of
coffee, which integrates the most famous drink in Scandinavia with the Indian Chai. The jug is designed
based on how to make traditional Chai. It is boiled in a
pot and poured from the hot pot into small cups. The handle refers to a old Danish way to use a
stick as an extension of the handle, because the pan was hot after it had been
over fire. The rough surface creates a contrast to Scandinavia minimalistic
style.
ENJOY THE NORDIC CHAI!
