This project was a study about creating patterns that reflect the identity of a place. With a gastronomic theme, my goal was to find out how the seasonings of one recipe can create a very particular personality for a plate and, therefore, for a restaurant.
I chose to work with a french restaurant located in Belo Horizonte (Brazil), called D'artagnan. What is special about this restaurant is the fact that, after each meal, the customers are given a souvenir: a handmade plate painted with the ingredients of the recipe that they ordered (Prato da Boa Lembrança). This means that the restaurant is concerned with designing the dining experience, which is why this place caught my attention.
I selected 4 dishes and researched the types of spices, herbs and condiments used to give the special flavour to them. I saw that each combination was unique, specially because such different kinds of seasonings were mixed.
So I went to the market looking for those seasonings and I found them really inspiring. I bought them and photographed one by one, edited and then designed 4 different patterns with the image of the plate that they represent. The designs were created to be applied to place mats, meant to be given to the customers at the end of each meal, along with the plate. The infinite possibilities to combine the ingredients allow a wide range of designs, including for other applications like fabric (kitchen towels) or ceramic jars.