We have a cup called Coralli made in Finland in the 1980s, an ARABIA product.
(Photo: Click here for the product page♪ )
The series name Koralli means "coral reef", and the pink coral is depicted as if it were dancing. The decoration looks like pink petals growing on the stem of a brown plant, and it looks like a cherry blossom.
Laija Uosikkinen, known for Emilia and Kalevala, was in charge of the design. Since Uosikkinen retired from ARABIA in 1986, this work designed in 1983 will be the last work of her career.
(Photo: Laija Uosikkinen, one of the representative designers of ARABIA in the 20th century)
What is the "S" in the S model?
The form design was handled by Ulla Procoppe, who is famous for Lusca and Valencia. Coralli follows the shape of the "S model" of the blockbuster Rusca designed in 1960.
The S model is a general term for the form of a series of tableware series such as cups, plates and pots adopted by Rusca as the basic form.
(Photo: Ura Procoppe, founder of the form of ARABIA)
What is the S in the S model? However, because the "same shape" continued to be used, it was called S-Model, taking the initials of Sama (meaning "same" in Finnish, same as Same in English).
Recombination of decorations
Since the appearance of Ruska's S model, many ARABIA products have been created by rearranging the surface decorations while the shape of tableware follows the form of Rusca. Rusca was designed in 1960 and Ulla Procoppe died in 1968.
Therefore, the Coralli released in 1983 tells us that Ulla Procoppe's design was adopted for nearly 20 years after his death. The S model is also used in GOG, Cosmos, Fractus, Flora, etc., which are works by Esteri Tomra.
(Photo: Fractus and Flora. In fact, they have exactly the same form and can be stacked.)
Coralli 4 sizes
Coralli comes in four sizes: demitasse, coffee, mug and tea cup. The coffee cup is slightly longer than the demitasse, but the diameter of the saucer is the same. The mug has a wide handle, but the size of the cup itself is the same as the coffee cup that arrived this time. The mug does not come with a saucer.
Do you want Nordic tableware?
Coralli's selling point is its cherry blossom-like color with pink coral. The above-mentioned Laija Uosikkinen invented the decoration, but her style sometimes draws things that do not exist in Scandinavia. The idyllic scenery of her masterpiece Emilia is said to depict America, and the Ali series incorporates arabesque patterns from the Islamic world that are not typical of Scandinavia.
(Photo: Emilia's masterpiece square plate. It is said that the scenery of an American lady enjoying a lunch was drawn.)
(Photo: Ari series cake plate. It has an intricate arabesque pattern, which can be said to be a heresy in simple modern Scandinavian tableware.)
Coralli's pink coral does not grow naturally in the Atlantic region, which is in Northern Europe, and is found only in areas near the equator in the Asia-Pacific region such as Japan, the Philippines, and Hawaii. Scandinavian tableware is characterized by incorporating spring-like splendor into its design, contrary to the cold locality, and Coralli can be said to be a vessel that perfectly expresses the de-regional design of Scandinavian tableware.
Scandinavian recession in the 80s
Coralli is a vintage tableware that is traded at a particularly high price among Arabia products. The reason why it became a phantom masterpiece is because the number of production was small. Northern Europe has been in a long economic recession since the 1980s. The Coralli was launched in 1983, just as the Finnish economy was showing signs of slowing down and ARABIA was reducing production.
Therefore, the number of ARABIA works produced in the 1980s has decreased compared to the works produced in the 1960s and 1970s. This is why Ruscas from the 60s are still relatively cheap to buy, while newer Coraris are very expensive for the same shape.
It is the same reason that earplates such as Kalevala are more expensive in the new era. Corari is very popular due to its cute design, and the larger the cup size, the higher the price on the vintage market.
Summary: S model and universal Scandinavian tableware
It is not true that the older the vintage tableware, the rarer it is, and the value is greatly influenced by the economic situation at the time. In general, when the economy is booming, there are many products with elaborate designs and the number of products produced is large.
In fact, many Arabia tableware in the 1980s are quite simply decorated, and there are some that are less attractive than the golden age before the 70s. On the flip side, intricately designed vessels made during the recession tend to be traded at high prices in the vintage market, and Coralli is the representative of this trend.
The S model was born in the 1960s and was used even in the booming 1970s only because of its perfect form. When considering trends, form and decoration are generally a set. When the design is obsolete, the form will be replaced. However, in the case of ARABIA products, the same shape has been maintained for decades by replacing the decorations.
That is the greatness of Ura Procoppe, and it is Scandinavian modern without strange prejudices. Not limited to the S model, Arabian products, and Finnish tableware, Scandinavian tableware has almost the same form, and the design of the finished product is reupholstered to create various variations. This is also the case with Gustavsberg products.
What did you think. Scandinavia is often referred to as simple modern, but its essence maintains a common form. I think that the word S model symbolizes the style of expanding the imagination based on the completed shape. Please take a look at the changes in design while comparing the shapes of Scandinavian tableware.