Guest Blog - MENU

Vanessa Anyaeji, designer and blogger, has already written one good article for us, but she did not want to stop on that :) So please welcome her article about company called MENU.

For the Danish design house, Menu, an unremitting characteristic that comes to light in both concept and cooperation is the juxtaposition of elements; the past with contemporary, rural with urban and rustic with simplicity. Obsessing over clever solutions and creating functional details for our ever changing world is what inspires these designers. Their pieces demonstrate a focus on good, original and utopian design; creating objects that not only incorporate novel materials but is also available to all classes in society.

Menu keeps design fresh and exciting, using juxtapositions to show how intrigue can be created by clever contrasts. Most recently, Menu teamed up with Norm Architecture to create The New Norm Dinnerware, a set of tableware especially made for Höst, a new restaurant in Copenhagen. With Höst being a culmination of romanticism and modernity, the Nordic scenery and minimalism, it seems only fitting that Menu should design their table ware.

The tableware is entrenched in tradition and timeless Scandinavian aesthetic. The multiple parts, materials and colours present themselves as new ways of expression.  The focal point of The New Norm Dinnerware is around the essential white plate, which can be toned down with a smaller blue or grey plate – or even a granite slab to create a new atmosphere.

What I find intriguing about this collection is how much detail is taken to invoke the Nordic scenery. The light blue glaze conjures up thoughts of the Nordic summer evenings. The dark blue and grey glaze represents the vivid seas and cloudy skies. The brown wood tones convey the forest’s profundity, warmth and sensuality while the texture of the stone plate recalls the image of Nordic mountains.

Follow Vanessa on her blog.