"Behind the Concept: From Ocean to Object"
After creating my first ring collection inspired by butterflies, I felt the need to continue exploring new morphologies.
I was interested in observing how other organisms and natural structures could be transformed into objects through abstraction.
This time, my attention turned to the ocean.
I have always been fascinated by the diversity of forms that exist beneath the water's surface: smooth contours, fluid volumes, and seemingly simple structures that conceal remarkable geometric complexity. I began by observing manta rays.
One of the first pieces to emerge from that exploration was this one.
Although the initial reference was a black manta ray, my intention was never to reproduce its form literally.
What interested me was the broad span of its wings, whose silhouette appears almost triangular, and the way its central body organizes the entire structure.
Starting from a more substantial form, I gradually removed material until I arrived at a more distilled shape.
The central opening emerged during that process as a way of suggesting the structure of the manta ray's body without explicitly representing it.
The piece ultimately became an abstraction rather than a representation.
Its silhouette was gradually simplified until only a few formal relationships remained: symmetry, flowing curves, lateral expansion, and a central core that brings the composition together.
A second interpretation emerged later.
This time, my observation focused on a baby manta ray.
Unlike the previous piece, this exploration was not centered around emphasizing a defined internal structure. The geometry became softer and more compact, prioritizing volume and overall presence over the definition of anatomical features.
What caught my attention was how much less defined the body appeared during its early stages of development. The forms felt softer, rounder, and less structured.
For that reason, I decided to abandon the central opening used in the previous piece and instead work with a more continuous and organic silhouette.
As I developed these pieces, I found myself asking a question that ultimately became more important than the original reference itself: What happens when a natural form is abstracted to the point where it becomes something entirely new?
That question eventually led me to explore other geometries found in the ocean, which would later give rise to the Shell series.
Some of the pieces emerged from more structured and defined geometries.
Others explored surfaces that appear weathered, eroded, or transformed by the passage of time.
Although each ring evolved in a different direction, they all shared the same objective: translating natural forms into contemporary geometries.
Recycled plastic once again became the material of choice for this series, allowing me to experiment with both smooth forms and more irregular textures. I came to realize that the more I observed these organisms and structures, the less interested I became in reproducing them. Instead, I wanted to understand which characteristics allowed them to remain recognizable even after being abstracted.
Nature has always taught me that there is something worth observing. And that, through abstraction, those observations can be transformed into something entirely new.
Perhaps that is one of the things that attracts me most about design: discovering how a form can move away from its origin while still preserving a quiet memory of what inspired it.