"Jugs Jug" Designer Anissa Kermiche on Nipple Plates and Celebrating the Female Form
Plus everything you need to know about her new collection, “Amuse Bush.”
If you’re a fan of homeware, a particular supporter of women’s bodies or a combination of the two, it’s likely you’ll be familiar with the work of Anissa Kermiche. A jewelry designer-turned-boob plate maker, the London-based, Parisian-born artist has become a staple amongst the homes and necks of the UK’s creative community and now, she’s back with an all-new collection.
In previous works like the “Jugs Jug” and “Love Handles” Vase, Kermiche’s work has drawn inspiration from the female form, something that continues to inform her designs. “I have always been fascinated by the human body and the female form in particular,” the designer tells Hypebae. “I find absolutely every detail of a woman’s body incredibly beautiful,” she adds.
Her new collection, dubbed “Amuse Bush,” offers an evolution of Kermiche’s playful exploration of femininity and contemporary womanhood with new mediums. “I always wanted to explore tableware as I find the offer quite limited and very serious, and I thought there was a lot of fun to be had in making parallels between pleasure and food,” the artist explains.
Comprising clit trays, ovary plates and nipple-shaped spice racks, the collection marks a slight departure from Kermiche’s typical, brazen color palette and instead arrives in muted tones of black, white and stone — yet continues to retain the designer’s tongue-in-cheek ethos. “The purpose of my work is to make people laugh. Humour is so important in my life, we have so much fun naming the pieces at the office and we often start finding names, and then design accordingly. In this instance, we thought about how to play around with the word ‘plate’ and came up with “Masturplate”, “Ovuplate” and “Forniplate”.
Ahead of the collection’s launch, we caught up with Kermiche to find out more about her fascination with the female form, the process behind creating “Amuse Bush” and what’s still to come.
Scroll down to read the full interview.
Your now-iconic designs initially stemmed from a distinctive line of fine jewelry — at what point did you realise you wanted them to evolve into objects?
What not many people know is that I actually designed both lines at the same time, it just took a lot longer to find a reliable factory for homeware, so I decided to launch the jewelry first and then homeware when it was ready, later down the line. I always knew I wanted to create a brand around jewelry and homeware, objects are just the jewels of a home to me. I tend to humanise everything — I think that’s how my brain operates. A home is more or less like a woman to me: rooms representing different body parts, and homeware being the accessories that help an interior express its style.
What can you tell us about that transition and your creative process? How does it work?
We have always imagined the jewelry and homeware collections to be aligned. For example, the “Body Language” collection, featuring naked sculptural parts, was aligned with our first line of vases (Popotin, Love Handles, etc). Same with the fabric earrings and candlesticks, imagined from the skirts and draped fabrics making a woman’s wardrobe.
Our latest jewellery collection “Deflowered” which plays around floral shapes perceived of a woman’s intimate parts, is also aligned with “Amuse Bush” depicting flowers and plants on plates as ovaries and other female parts. We do a lot of research, to make sure there is no repetition in what we do, and that our work remains original.
Femininity and the female form have long been a source of inspiration for you, why is that? Why is it important for you to showcase these themes?
I have always been fascinated by the human body and the female form in particular. If I don’t see a person for many years, I could recognise them a decade later just from the shape of their ankles if I am standing behind them (it did happen!). I recognise faces in the tube if I see them more than once on my way to work, and watching people and bodies is an endless source of inspiration for me. I am obsessed with the magic of genetics and how children inherit some of their parents’ features. I find absolutely every detail of a woman’s bodies incredibly beautiful and exploring is infinite in my work.
Your new collection, Amuse Bush, offers a tongue-in-cheek representation of modern-day womanhood, how did the idea for the collection come about?
I always wanted to explore tableware as I find the offer quite limited and very serious, and I thought there was a lot of fun to be had in making parallels between pleasure and food. Ultimately, cooking is about self love. We often start brainstorming around puns first, and design accordingly.
How do these pieces differ from your previous offerings?
They differ in their function — it is our very first tableware range, but ultimately still similar to previous work as we are looking for ways to bring humour into our products and to humanize objects of daily life.
What’s your favourite piece in the collection, and why?
I love the Amuse Bush plate a lot, it just makes me laugh a lot. The purpose of my work is to make people laugh. Humour is so important in my life, we have so much fun naming the pieces at the office and we often start finding names, and then design accordingly. In this instance, we thought about how to play around with the word ‘plate’ and came up with “Masturplate”, “Ovuplate” and “Forniplate”.
The Bush featured in the Amuse Bush plate was hand drawn and then scanned onto the plate and we then carved a little belly button on top. It would be fun to see the reaction of people if they are offered the plate full, and witness their reaction once the food is gone — when the flowery pubes show up!
Finally, you’ve made a name for yourself within the jewellery sphere and now objects and homeware — are there any other industries or disciplines you’d like to explore?
So many! I would love to design lamps – all the sketches are ready but the electrical parts seem to be challenging, as the designs are not that simple. Fingers crossed, I hope they can come to life soon!
