When I think of ceramic design, I think of Dutch Design, Scandinavian Design or more in general modern industrial design. But modern ceramic design is much more than that. Design is comprehensive and modern is not an invention of the 20th century. Modern design is as old as humanity itself.
In this part of the world you need to dig more then 7,500 years in the past to find design pottery; the Linear Pottery Culture. Typical are the serried band decorations that are scratched in the outer walls of the earthenware. With this, the Younger Stone Age (Neolithic) was inaugurated in Europe .
But for me this is a very outdated design, I don’t want anything to do with that. As a contemporary world citizen, I prefer to be inspired by modern funnelbeaker ceramics….
Modern Ceramic Design
The Funnelbeaker culture got its name from the funnel-shaped pottery. This revolutionary design made furore in Stone Age Europe from 4,350 to 2,750 BCE. In the Netherlands, these makers are especially famous for the way they buried their dead: in dolmens.
The Funnelbeaker culture was succeeded in Europe by the Corded Ware Culture (2,900 – 2,500 BC) and the Bell Beaker Culture (2,500 to 2,000 BCE). Modern design of rope prints and herringbone motifs.
New forms reminiscent of reverse church bells have conquered the imagination of the people in the Bronze Age. But I don’t want anything to do with that kind of modern frills… I want solid design of the funnelbeakers.
European design
This design is not a concept conceived behind a PC, but born from its predecessors like the Linear Pottery from more than 7,500 years ago. In the course of 1,000 years, these European creators developed a form language that was central to both beauty and use; the characteristic of design.
I find it a great shape. It begins as a sphere, the primeval form of a pot. It’s a form that protects, embraces and keeps warm. But then comes the revolution; not a larger ball shape, but a straight line on top of it. Not vertical but at an outward angle, an eruption. A funnel, a river delta, a form to receive and give.
Because there is no copyright on this design today, I was able to recreate these funnel shape cups. No not of earthenware, but in glazed dishwasher safe stoneware. And slightly smaller so that you can drink a caffè latte from these stone age cups comfortably behind your laptop .
I had to sacrifice some of the original design choices to the demands of the present time. But the line decoration I kept, a bit looser, which keeps up with the zeitgeist and my personality.
Funnelbeakers, modern coffee cups
This ceramic design has enriched the daily life of people in large parts of Stone Age Europe for more than 1,500 years. Hold a funnelbeaker in your hands, feel the happiness, the sadness and solace that only a steaming hot drink can give.
What drink it was? Perhaps warm milk, because besides making ceramics, these people also practiced agriculture and kept livestock.
So drinking a Caffè Latte has a very long history in northern Europe. Well, without the caffeine. Fortunately I am not a stone age man and I can enjoy my coffee with a funnelbeaker…
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