‘Revisiting the past and
reconstituting older
processes is an important
part of my practice’
THE FINISHED WATER KEFIR
KIT IN RIGGIO’S STUDIO. BASED
ON THE SHAPE OF A GREEK
AMPHORA, THE ELEGANT
BONE CHINA SET FEATURES
A TRANSLUCENT BLUE GLAZEbotanicals such as ginger and mint to make unique
flavourings? Researching kits used in the fermentation
of consumables over the centuries, ceramic became our
focus. Because it is fired at such a high temperature,
bone china is an inert material, and therefore ideal for
fermenting vessels. This led us to the young London-
based ceramicist Christopher Riggio, whom we tasked
with designing a vessel and infusion basket (Hart’s
methods allow spices and herbs to circulate freely with
the live culture) to bring the production of flavoured
water kefir elegantly into the home.
Riggio had recently graduated with an MA in
ceramics at the Royal College of Arts in London (after
studying sculpture in his native Canada) and was
already making an impact with his work. Now runninghis own studio in Camberwell, he has worked alongside
artists Martin Smith and Hitomi Hosono, and his
own ceramics have received international awards. He
draws inspiration from philosophy, painting, art and
craft, and his designs connect the poetry of the past
with new materials and applications. ‘Revisiting the
past, and reconstituting older processes and materials
that are considered redundant, is an important part
of my practice,’ he says. ‘I find it fascinating that
imaginative functional designs are left discarded
and often never reinterpreted.’
Sitting down over a glass of Agua de Madre,
the collaborators worked out how they might make
something that could be both fully functional
and sit proudly in the most style-conscious kitchen.
‘I immersed myself in the essential technicalities
and principles of brewing water kefir,’ says Riggio.
‘The process fine-tuned by Nicola was in many
ways a scientific approach that had to be respected.
We spoke about suitable shapes, and reflected
on how to improve the fermentation process for
a day-to-day domestic operation.’
Their conversations led Riggio to the Greek
amphora. An inner vortex would spur circulation and
a narrow base would stop sediment simply dropping
to the bottom. The basket insert that would hold the
aromatics would be hydrodynamic (allowing the liquid
to move through it), with a toggle system to lock it in
place and allow for easy extraction. ‘In early discussions
with Nicola, I recalled a clever design from a Victorian
tobacco jar from 1830 – a seal kept tobacco fresh and
employed an intuitive locking system,’ recounts
Riggio. ‘I went out to find the antique and came upon
a sturdy tobacco jar by 19th-century British designer
Christopher Dresser, which stayed in the studio during
the conception of the water kefir vessels.’
Riggio used a plaster lathe to create the initial
forms, sketching in three dimensions. Once a shape
was chosen, he used a technique called spilt moulding –
which entails splitting a plaster mould into sections
suitable for slip casting. Separate moulds were then
created for the lids. Bone china was used in liquid form
known as slip and poured in the moulds to create thin
casts. He then created a specific hand tool to trim away
clay from the inside of the vessel in a systematic way.
Hart is now upscaling her cottage operation and the
Handmade project has informed her production
process. She has bought inert ceramic wine fermenters
that will impart no flavour to the drink, and is investing
in baskets that will contain the botanicals much like
the system employed by Riggio’s miniature maker. With
her sights on a space in Hackney, Hart hopes to have
a Madre Tap Room-cum-Fermentary open this year.^ ∂^
aguademadre.co.uk; riggio.co.ukMaking Of...
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