Think Fabricate Brooklyn Plates

Originally produced as a limited edition to coordinate with Think Fabricate’s display at 2010 BKLYN DESIGNS, Brooklyn Plates is a set of transfer printed coup style dinner plates featuring aerial views of Brooklyn from the late 1800s.

Each of the three transferware plates features a portion of a lithographic print by Currier and Ives dating back to 1879, showing a “balloon view” of Brooklyn with its south and west waterfront in the foreground. The three details from the map used on the plates illustrate the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Heights, and the Navy Yard with Walkabout Bay in the foreground. The reverse side of the each coupe-style plate depicts the Think Fabricate logo – a composition of two overlapping heads forming a light bulb.

The color of the plates is the same blue that is featured in the Think Fabricate logo. Susan Doban, co-founder of Think Fabricate, explains, “It’s a bit more intense and rich than a traditional Wedgewood blue, giving the historical imagery on the plates a more modern appearance. In our interior design and architectural projects, we often find that the right color can make an important impact and breathe new life into a historical space.”

Transfer printing can be traced to mid-eighteenth century England where consumers called for an affordable alternative to labor-intensive, costly, hand-painted china. The traditional transferware process involves engraving a decorative image into a copper plate, which is inked with ceramic ink and printed onto special tissue paper. The paper is then transferred to the ceramic piece, which is then glazed and fired to permanently set the design. During the height of its popularity in the late 19th century, the process of transferware printing was brought to America. To this day, it remains an accurate way to create multiple ceramic pieces but the process has evolved to include digital printing.

For more information, visit Think Fabricate.