TACTILE CUTLERY
1984

I always found frustrating to renounce the pleasure of touching, in such a moment of enjoyment and gratification like the one when we have a meal is: while most of our senses are simultaneously stimulated, the touch itself is crestfallen by the interposition of the cutlery – demanded by both hygiene and politeness – between our hands and the food. Nevertheless I think that the same forks, knives and spoons, when provided with an handle agreeable for the touching, can call back this neglected sense to the enjoyment of the multiform pleasures that a dinner table can dispense. I therefore focused my attention upon the tactile potential of cutlery and conceived a rigorously cylindrical handle, into which I’ve inlaid some stainless steel spheres which, with their smooth protuberances, give our hands a pleasant tactile stimulation. These objects demand to be perceived not only as a visual surprise but, also, and above all, as a subtle invitation to a direct epidermic contact .. one more way to create a warm atmosphere around a dinner table.