Futuristic Punk Red-Sea Creatures, Morphology E by Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai, 2016

About This Piece

Contemporary Design

Futuristic Punk Red-Sea Creatures is designed and created by Gilli Kuchik and Ran Amitai of Morphology E of Bakery Studio. At the basis of this project, was a desire to preserve the value and quality of hand worked ceramics, in a manner which is more efficient within the manufacturing process. This is achieved by reversing the traditional order of the industrial manufacturing line – and shifting the manual work from the decoration stage - one before last in the chain of production - to the mold creating stage - the first in the chain of production. In contrast with the conventional method of creating plaster molds which is based on a predetermined model, in this series, the molds were processed by hand spontaneously, using different drills especially designed for carving cavities in plaster. The combination of different drills and spontaneous free form work of the drilling processes creates a series of wares that share a common aesthetic born from the making process. Each mold created is a limited edition, valid through the mold’s life span, and so – when the mold wears out, the series ends. The development and work in negative was inspired by the concrete pieces of the ceramicist designer Gdula Ogen, Ran's grandmother, who worked for many years in negative sculpting with sand box molds and concrete casts. Futuristic Punk Red Sea Creatures was commissioned by Benyamini Contemporary Ceramics Center for "Matter of Fact" curated by Johnathan Hopp and Maya Ben David. The series includes different morphologies each one signed and numbered.

Designer	Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai
Manufacturer	Gilli Kuchik and Ran Amitai
Design Period	From 2000
Year	2016
Production Period	2010 to Present
Country of Manufacture	Israel
Identifying Marks	Signed by maker Numbered
Style	Contemporary
Detailed Condition	New — This is a new (unused) item of contemporary design.
Edition Number	Limited edition valid through the mold’s life span
Product Code	CBK-160926
Additional Information	Made by Hand Open Edition
Materials	Ceramic
Color	White
Width	11 cm 10.5 cm
Depth	10 cm 10 cm
Height	25 cm 25 cm
Duties Notice	Import duty is not included in the prices you see online. You may have to pay import duties upon receipt of your order.

Shipping & Delivery

Manufacturing Time	We will contact you in regards to lead time when the order is placed.
Ships from	Israel
Duties Notice	Import duty is not included in the prices you see online. You may have to pay import duties upon receipt of your order.
Returns	Returns accepted within 14 days of delivery, except for Made-to-order items

Delivery Details

Delivery will be completed by a parcel service such as UPS, DHL, or FedEx.
You will receive a tracking number to monitor the status of your shipment.
Delivery will take place between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
A wooden crate may be used for intercontinental shipments for maximum protection.
Item will be left in its packaging after delivery.
A signature will be required upon delivery.

*Important Note

Please examine the packaging upon delivery. In the event that there are visible signs of damaged packaging, please indicate the problem on the Delivery Note, take pictures, and—if the item inside shows damages—contact us within 48 hours of delivery. A signed delivery receipt without notations regarding damaged packaging represents your acceptance of the completed order in perfect condition.

About the Designer

Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai

Designers Ran Amitai (born in Jerusalem in 1980) and Gilli Kuchik (born in Jerusalem in 1983) cofounded Bakery Studio in Tel Aviv in 2009. In 2018, they changed their name to Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai. The design studio operates in various fields, including art direction, furniture, tableware, and jewelry design, among others. Amitai and Kuchik believe in a design process driven by hands-on experimentation and look for new ways to interpret traditional production methods and object morphologies. Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai moves freely between self-produced, limited edition pieces and mass-produced objects, as well as conceptual, experimental, and functional projects.

Since its establishment, the studio has worked with leading companies in Israel and abroad. Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai is perhaps best known for NOM (Nature of Material), a collection of stackable, lightweight furniture that debuted during Milan Design Week 2010. Since 2012, Italian furniture company Cappellini has manufactured the series. The collection, which was inspired by the graceful folds of origami, is composed of laser-cut aluminum and feels at once organic and constructed. In 2014, NOM was awarded the Red Dot “Best of the Best” design award, and several prototypes and models from the collection are now part of Design Museum Holon's permanent collection in Israel.

Other standout designs include: Shares Necklace (2012); Profilini Bar Stool (2013); Hafucha Table (2015), which was inspired by the work of American sculptor Alexander Calder; the Ortega Sink collection (2015); and Vase Composition (2015), which merges two vase functions in one object.

Kuchik describes the husband-and-wife working relationship as “fire and water . . . We feel that we are each a force that can sometimes get out of control, and combined we balance each other out. Sometimes this meeting point between our two ‘design personalities’ is where our projects are born.”

Studio Gilli Kuchik & Ran Amitai has been featured in numerous exhibitions and design fairs, including, but not limited to, Collective Tissue at Paradigma Gallery in Tel Aviv (2010); Promisedesign at Ventura Lambrate in Milan (2011); the Fresh Design fair in Tel Aviv (2013) and the pair’s first solo exhibition, Flat 3d - Bakery Studio Folding Chairs at the Museum (2015-2016) at Design Museum Holon, which followed the development process of NOM.

Since the studio’s inception, it has won numerous awards, including an Excellency Award from the Manufactures Association of Israel in 2009, an Excellency Award at the IBDC-International Bicycle Design Competition in 2010, and a nomination for the Hublot Design Prize in 2015.

Amitai and Kuchik met while studying industrial design at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. They both graduated in 2009. Prior to their studies at Bezalel, Amitai attended the Musrara School of Photography in Jerusalem from 2003 to 2004. Kuchik studied painting under artist Mary Beth McKenzie at the Art Students League of New York in 2002 and at the Jerusalem Studio School from 2002 to 2003.

Amitai and Kuchik are also partners in life; they married in 2010. In 2012, they became proud parents to their daughter Maya. The couple lives and works in Tel Aviv.