A collection of 30 dinner plates designed by Albert Schrurs of Allegory combine to create a map of France showing the location of the country's Michelin-starred restaurants.
The France collection was conceived at a workshop at the ECAL design school in Switzerland and will be produced in a limited edition by French porcelain brand Bernardaud.
Here's some text from Schrurs:
FRANCE is a porcelaine decoration project for Bernardaud. The project is the result of a Workshop led by Pierre Charpin in the MAS Luxury course given by ECAL.
The project was selected by the French manufacturer to be produced in a limited edition for their Foundation and is currently exhibited in Limoges in the "Le Décor est Planté" exhibition along with other projects from several international designers and some students.
Being an Architect, I was attracted by working with an aesthetic close to my background and fundamental references. I then remembered this amazing marketing story about Michelin, the giant french tire manufacture: In 1900, for the Paris "Exposition Universelle", they decided to give free "RED GUIDES" to their customers.
These guides would actually recommend "good restaurants and hotels" around the country, but it would also be an invitation to drive to these culinary destinations and so to use their tires.
From then on, the Michelin Red Guide is considered as one of the most respected reference for gastronomy critique and the best Chefs fight for its stars (ranking system).
My project is a tribute to both the amazing road network and gastronomy. By juxtaposing the 30 different plates (5 differents sizes), we discover a giant map of the french roads and best restaurants.
The back of the plate allows to identify the position of the plate on the map and on the front size, a cardinal arrow indicates the orientation of the plate by indicating the North.
Albert Schrurs is an EPFL grad. Architect and an ECAL MAS Luxury grad. Designer. He is also the co-founder and manager of the Geneva-based studio ALLEGORY sà rl.