Medalta re-designs vintage dinnerware with contemporary artists’ designs

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Photo by Medalta Curator Jenna Stanton

Re-Designed Medalta @ MADE

Re-Designed Medalta @ MADE

Medalta is making the old new again with an innovative new line of dishes. Re-Designed Medalta is a new concept that has artists and designers creating contemporary patterns for whiteware dishes that have been in storage for decades. These limited edition dishes are excellent examples of Canadian design that marries the past with the present and have already been featured nationally in Flare magazine and Toronto’s 2014 Design Offsite Festival.

Medalta’s Re-Designed line uses technology and processes that were developed during one of our contemporary ceramic artists’ residencies in the summer of 2011. The residency brought together a group of Canadian artists who experimented with screen-printing and ceramic decals. These experiments lead to contemporary designs being permanently embedded in pre-finished ceramics, creating an exciting new use for the thousands of dishes that Medalta held in storage for nearly sixty years. The result is a colourful example of vintage and contemporary Canadian design.

The impetus for Re-Designed Medalta, according to Artistic Director Aaron Nelson is, simply, relevance. “Medalta is a small not-for-profit that has succeeded because we focus on how our heritage and contemporary art initiatives add value to today’s world. We’re not just a museum preserving the past or a contemporary artists’ facility making work – we’re actively using our heritage and artist studios to make relevant contributions. Re-Designed Medalta is a perfect example of that philosophy in action.” Re-Designed Medalta has certainly made a splash nationally. Thanks to a partnership with Torontobased MADE Design, Medalta’s new line of dishes was shown in the 20140 Toronto Design Offsite Festival (where it received a Juror’s Choice nod) and has been featured in the February 2014 issue of Flare magazine. Currently, eight artists have been asked to submit limited edition designs for Re- Designed Medalta. These designs are available via Toronto’s MADE Designs online or retail shop.

Report courtesy of Medalta in the Historic Clay District