Antonio Aricò creates a veritable canvas of emotions with ‘Tiles for Togetherness’

Modern life and its distractions, often keep us from the smaller pleasures of life such as sharing a meal. Effectively these distractions are isolating us from the people we love. Italian-style cooking has often served as one of the ultimate inspirations for tasty and easy home-cooked dishes made with few, simple and flavorful ingredients. The Italian brand Barilla Classic has initiated a new campaign that showcases the perfect way to reconnect with loved ones. Leveraging the power of Italian inventiveness to encourage families to come together around the table, is Barilla’s trademark 'Sign Of Love'. This set of plates titled Tiles for Togetherness is Barilla’s symbol of togetherness around the table that teleports you to an Italian landscape, where heritage and traditions mix with Italian design.

A set of nine plates has vibrant colours and playful patterns designed by Italian designer Antonio Aricò. The product design allows users to connect the plates to each other, building a patchwork of colours and emotions. Commenting on the patchwork concept the industrial designer relays “Observe the beauty of this patchwork table. The connected square plates symbolise the bonds we forge when we gather around a meal. They carry heartfelt phrases, whispered expressions of togetherness and a real sign of love. The shape I’m thinking represents the connections we make, bringing people closer and creating a patchwork of shared experiences.”

On each plate are phrases symbolising togetherness at the table and Italian culinary culture. These phrases are common colloquialisms one is bound to hear at the table, such as, ‘What's good today?’, ‘Add a place at the table’, ‘Enjoy your meal’, ‘Everyone at the table’, ‘Together there is more taste’, A sign of love’, ‘Together is tastier’, ‘Always al dente’, and ‘Eating is an art’. Aricò shares, “With joy in my heart, I present these plates as a sign of love and togetherness. Passing them to my colourful family, we create an unbreakable bond. Together, we’ll create memories around the table, nourished by the warmth of shared moments.”

In every work of Antonio Aricò, it is possible to trace the imprint of his poetics inspired by tradition, the fantastic, the romantic and the ancient. His work is akin to an author’s production, one that feeds on dreamlike visions and the contamination of symbols and languages, to become concrete in a range of products and projects where design, art and craftsmanship fuse to touch the hearts and minds of people. The product designer’s style can be characterised by the freshness and spontaneity of his drawings. A naive but cultured and refined language that embraces sophisticated and pop poetics linked to the values and identity of the most authentic and Mediterranean Italian culture.