RESIDUE MATERIALS FROM THE GASTRONOMY
This project uses waste materials from the catering industry to reduce the use of conventional resources in ceramic production.
Restaurants not only supply me with ceramic waste, but also kitchen scraps such as nut shells, carrot tops, potato peels, bones and much more, which I use for glazes.
In my project with the catering industry, I am discovering that materials that previously ended up in the trash can be used again for high-quality products. It is even possible to create products with exceptional aesthetics. The recycled tableware produced is given an individual color depending on the raw material. The glazes made from plant waste fascinate with their unique color images.
Tableware made from recycled ceramics with glazes made from fruit and vegetable scraps
Tableware made from recycled ceramics with glazes made from fruit and vegetable scraps. Photographs
MATERIAL RESEARCH CERAMICS
In the catering industry, a lot of dishes break. Through my recycling tests with porcelain , I found that fired dishes can be reused. Not only are restaurants a good source of shards, they also use various ceramic materials, be it industrial or handmade porcelain, stoneware or earthenware. This allows me to test a wide range of ceramic materials. I received the first shards from Rechberg 1837 and the Rank cultural venue in Zurich and from Biel from Éclsue and the Lokal . One part of the broken dishes was made of glazed stoneware, the other part was made of glazed porcelain. Despite the glaze, I was able to replace 50% of the porcelain mass with the recycled material. In collaboration with a local cement factory, I shred the ceramic waste. The resulting mass is suitable for serial slip casting, which creates dishes that are dense and stable and can be used again in the catering industry.
Crusher
Ground shards
Ceramics with recycled material
MATERIALRECHERCHE GLASUR
Ceramic glazes were often created by chance. This is how it was done over 1000 years ago. It was discovered in the 1st century BC that ceramics fired in wood fires contained glassy deposits. The wood ash that was thrown around during the fire remained on the ceramic vessels. This ash glaze was further developed and was an important component in ceramic production for a long time.
With an ash glaze, ash particles combine with the ceramic at high temperatures and fuse to form a glassy coating. The minerals that plants extract from the soil as they grow influence the quality and color of the resulting glaze.
With the “Gastronomy” project I use plant residues such as nut shells, carrot leaves, potato peelings and much more for glazes. The minerals from the plants combine with the ceramic vessels and produce colorful, shiny or matt glazes.
Although we now know a lot about the chemical composition of plants, glazes made from plants always remain a surprise.
The glazes made from leftover materials are an ongoing project that is constantly changing due to the existing raw materials.
