Juicy Salif
| Designer | |
| Dates | 1990 |
Description
The Orange squeezer Juicy Salif designed by Philippe Starck for Alessi has a polyamide feet and has a polished aluminium finish. Later editions were produced with a matt black finish or a 24-carat gold finish. It is 29cm high and 14cm wide. It is composed by an egg-shaped head upon which you are supposed to place the orange and by 3 legs. If you press, turn and squeeze the orange on the Salif, the juice will quickly collect in a glass placed under it. It is easy to clean, it only needs to be run under a warm tap straight away. It is not expensive in comparison to the usual orange and lemon squeezers: #40.00.
A Personal View
The design of Juicy Salif was unexpected: Philippe Starck had been commissioned the design of a tray by Alessi and was stuck with ideas. One evening he went to a fish restaurant in Naples, was served an octopus and all of a sudden he thought he could apply its shape to the design of an orange squeezer. The Salif has achieved the status of a design icon: it is not only functional but also a sculptural work that can be enjoyed for its eye-catching shape. I like it for its simple elegant design: I like the idea of collecting the juice straight into the glass instead of using an electrical chunky squeezer that collects it in a plastic container. It has the right height to be used comfortably and it is a very amusing piece of design: its shape is very mysterious and intriguing, it reminds of an octopus, or of a big spider and it draws peoples attention.
Context
Juicy Salif has been the starting point of design philosophy for Philippe Starck: it has been the first of many subverchic items which form the so-called collection of Good Goods, the Non-Products for the Non-Consumer for the Next Moral Market. Starck believes in the design of objects which are not created by marketing or advertising. He has tried to launch a collection of basic items such as cloths, organic food and everyday objects which are long-lasting, ecological and which are based on an economic use of materials and fair-trade market. They are called subverchic because they all share a subversive and elegant design, they are simple and amusing at the same time. They are designed to target the invisible tribe of Non-consumers : people who are interested in few good well-made basic possessions, people who believe that less is more. From Starcks point of view objects need not only to be aesthetically pleasant, they also need to be functional with humour. Examples of Good Goods are La Marie (chair), Excalibur (toilet brush).
Links
http://www.philippe-starck.com/ -Official site of Philippe Starck
http://www.alessi.com/ - This is the company which collaborates with Philippe Starcks
| Author | Francesca Vacirca | Date: | 14th March 2007 |