Bordallo Pinheiro

Tropical beauty

From the creative minds of the Bordallo Pinheiro team comes the astonishingly beautiful Tropical Fruits, or Frutos Tropicais to be authentic to its Portuguese roots. We look at this gorgeous new launch which is joined by another Bordallo Pinheiro introduction sure to cause a stir, Cabbage with Lobsters…

Renowned for its finely detailed, intricate collections – Bordallo Pinheiro has amassed fans across the globe for its gorgeously ornate, and cleverly designed, pieces. And they do not disappoint with Tropical Fruits, the latest launch from the acclaimed Portuguese brand.

Tropical Fruits celebrates the richness in nature’s finest produce, an ode to what mother earth provides, as well as to what the Bordallo Pinheiro’s team of artisan creators are capable of producing.

“As for the design process and the complex production phases,” says Bordallo Pinheiro’s coordinating designer, Francisco Vieira Martins, “the whole process was very challenging, demanding and time-consuming, culminating in an aesthetically and technically very rich line, and of great eclecticism, where manual operations clearly stand out. It exalts tropical naturalism, for this very accuracy, which has always been present since the creation.”

Achieving the colours, textures and shapes of each fruit required a process of experimentation based on several complex manual techniques. The final result is a collection comprising 24 pieces – think bowls, plates, salad bowls, platters and boxes – each piece so realistic you are momentarily transported to the most exotic destinations, and through the naturalistic and fantasy origin of Bordallo Pinheiro’s founder Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro’s work. Each piece in the assortment is meticulously hand-

Each stunning piece in the Tropical Fruits collection is hand painted with meticulous detail. In fact, each petal of the pitaya (dragon fruit) was individually made by the Bordallo Pinheiro craftspeople.

“The whole process was very challenging, demanding and time-consuming, culminating in an aesthetically and technically very rich line”

Francisco Vieira Martins, coordinating designer, Bordallo Pinheiro

7

the number of fruits which make up the Tropical Fruits collection

painted and can be mixed and matched on the table, further enhancing the vivid colours of each element or display it in mono-fruit, both options have strong visual impact.

Bordallo Pinheiro tells us the new collection is a tribute to the exuberance and details of nature at its purest state. Seven different fruits make up the assortment – pitaia, kiwi, passion fruit, papaya, anona, coconut and avocado – all recreated using various manual techniques that lend them colours, textures and shapes so real you might think you are in the middle of a tropical forest.

Cabbage with Lobsters

Another Bordhallo Pinheiro introduction is the stunningly detailed Cabbage with Lobsters. To create the collection, Bordallo Pinheiro used the intricate classic dishes created by founder Raphael in the 19th century as a base, combining vegetable elements with animals that mimic human characteristics. The lobster, therefore, appears clinging to the cabbage with its large claws, as if exalting the vegetable in a surreal dance. An inimitable imaginary that continues to come to life. In the complex exploration of the naturalist aesthetic, Bordallo Pinheiro used the cabbage and the crustaceans as a laboratory for the possibilities of modelling and the search for perfect glazes, demonstrating all the potential of the Fábrica de Faianças. Almost 140 years later, it continues to perfect Raphael’s artistic virtuosity - and humour - combining two emblematic elements in pieces of great dimensions and enormous technical challenge. Cabbage with Lobsters brings Bordallian sculptural art to the modern table in a celebration of sea and earth. This collection consists of six pieces, which can be used as decorative elements or to add something special to the table.