SVA Students Reimagine Mundane Dining Tools for MoMA Design Store
It was five years ago when Paola Antonelli, the Museum of Modern Art senior curator of architecture and design and School of Visual Arts faculty member, suggested to Allan Chochinov, the New York school’s MFA products of design department chair, that his students conceive pieces for the MoMA Design Store. Now in its fourth year, Chochinov says, “To be the only academic program with this type of partnership with MoMA is a tremendous opportunity for our students.”
This round, the 25 students in the program were tasked with improving the dining experience, elevating such humdrum items as the coaster and the bottle opener aesthetically and functionally. Multi-ccino, Josh Corn’s borosilicate glass mug, for example, helps make the perfect latte by demarcating the correct proportions of espresso and milk. Panisa Khunprasert’s silicone Geo coasters not only stack but also interlock. Alexa Forney utilizes the same material for her playful Tic-Tac-Trivet. Oscar Pipson channeled the golden spiral for the cutout in his aptly named brass Divine Proportion bottle opener.