Mono No Aware (物の哀れ)
Set of 13 sake cups, 2020
Mono no aware (物の哀れ) is a set of 13 stacking cups designed to embody Chef Niki Nakayama’s philosophy of mindful eating and balance. With each cup representing each dish in her famous 13-course Keiseki meal, each drink is meant to be consumed and stacked before the next dish arrives. The meditative action of stacking the cups serves as a physical representation of the passage of time throughout the 3 hour meal by indicating the number of dishes one has had, thereby reminding oneself to be more aware of how much has been eaten and how many dishes are left.
Physical prototype
Hand thrown white stoneware ceramics
Process
Snippets of the design and making process I went through, 13 of the 50 pages.
Research on Niki Nakayama
Ideation process after streamlining concept
Material considerations and Production
Thank you for viewing Mono No Aware.
Design, concept and prototype by Denise Wang
