Oli (An Olive Bowl) by Miguel Pinto Félix
2015 - 2016, Platinum A' Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design Award Winner

Inspiration
The olive tree has, always been an inspiration for me. Olive oil and olives, the products of this tree have been a motto for my work. Oli is the second object that I’ve design inspired in the olives. The brand Oli is short for the name of this curvaceous and feminine fruit from the olive tree, the olive. which originates from the latin word olea. It conveys grace and lightness, joy and sound, making its understanding easier beyond borders.

Creativity
Oli is the Olive bowl that joins aesthetics and function, holding both olives and pits. It is a porcelaine object, dyed black on the outside, completely glazed and horizontally divided in two parts. The base is to serve olives and the upper part is a container for the pits, which can be taken out through a removable lid allowing the piece to be cleansed.

Design Challenges
The main creative challenge was to combine aesthetics and function. One of the obstacle was to calculate and decide the capacity of the bowl. Other, was the technical problem to calculate the hole that makes possible to clean the pit's part of the bowl.

Production Technology
This object was developed after several drawings on paper, and a mockup also on paper. Afterwards we developed this object in a digital 3D image in the computer, when we decided on the measurements and capacity. Two prototypes were made in PVC, 3D impressions were made to decide the final form of the OLI. From this 3D impression result the mould from which the first OLI was produced. There are two different technics of producing the mould, one in plaster and the other in silicone.