(Un)forbidden City Collection is an important innovative project created in collaboration with 8 Beijing architects and industrial designers. A cultural exchange exploring the potential of Chinese product design, the designers were asked to design a tray:

Clouds Root, designed by Wang Shu of Amateur Architecture Studio, 2012, is a set of two sculptural pieces inspired by elusive cloud formations, one piece larger than the other, representing male and female form fitting together at one point. Clouds Root Trays are designed with a distinctive straight raised edge.

“The design originates from memory. Chinese academicians like to compare the elusiveness of clouds with the inconsistency of human emotions. The stones in the academician’s garden are still clouds, but they also imply the affections between man and woman. My inspiration of design was from my memory of the stones in the gardens. We always hope to grasp something solid in the ever changing life . such as the solid stones. This is why the garden stones are called “Clouds Root”, explains architect and designer Wang Shu.

Design: Wang Shu / 2012 / China
Materials: 18/10 Mirror Polished Stainless Steel