CICLUS
spring/summer 2009


"With emotion a product goes further, touches deep inside."

In May 2009 the Barcelona based eco-design studio for corporative gifts, gastronomical pieces and accessories, presents new pieces of 'emotional designed' bracelets, necklaces, rings etc, the new partnership with the shop www.objectfetish.com, and announced that the founder of Ciclus, Brazilian designer Tati Guimarães was called to teach children to recycle.

fig.: Princess Necklace, Ciclus, 2009. The necklace is made of ring pulls from beverage cans.

Learning to recycle
"As a girl, I created toys out of materials that I found. As a teenager, I made collages with images cut out of magazines, and necklaces incorporating all sorts of used bits and pieces. In 1997 I met Lúcia, the mother of a close friend. She showed me baskets that she had made out of old newspapers and I was immediately entranced by them: my eyes didn’t stop shining. From that moment on, all waste products began to take on a new significance for me: they became an eternal fountain of inspiration. I am forever grateful to Lúcia, for it was she that opened up a world of emotion through the principle of ecodesign." Tati Guimarães

Shops in Barcelona, Paris, Lisbon - and on the Internet
Ciclus is available in several shops in Barcelona, at the DesignPack Gallery in Paris www.designpackgallery.fr, and has landed in spring 2009 in Lisbon, Portugal, such as at the Centro Cultural Belém Design Shop, one of the leading cultural centers of the city www.ccb.pt. At the same time, Ciclus has started a partnership with a virtual shop for consumers all around the globe: www.objectfetish.com is specialized in contemporary jewelry from international designers.

Emotional design - Eco design
What Ciclus means with 'emotional design' is explained as follows: “The main objective of Ciclus is to touch through design. With emotion a product goes further, touches deep inside. Whether it's for personal use, as the fashion accessories, or it's a corporate gift, there's no sense in design for me if it does not touch someone”, says Tati Guimarães. The fundamental principles of ecodesign for Ciclus are: "reduce, reuse, recycle".

Question: Is the half-moon bracelet made of film material like it is used for movies? Or photo material or for screen-printing or any other film material?

Tati Guimarães: "The Half Moon Bracelet is made of films like those that used to be used in printers before digital replaced the need of film to print, for example, newspapers. We collect it with some few off set printers that still work with it. This film, after used, generally is thrown away because it's all printed and cannot be reused for printing. So, Ciclus gives one more use for something that would inevitably be thrown into garbage."

fig.: Detail - Halfmoon Bracelet, Ciclus, 2009.

Question: The "Princess Necklace" from the can collection is made of ring pulls. Are the ring pulls from a special beverage can? (Image above.)

Tati Guimarães: "All the ring pulls come from indistinct cans. They are generally soda or beer can. We (and friends) just collect what we find ahead. Then they are selected, cleaned (if necessary) and polished until not having any sharp edge."

Question: Do you exclusively design sustainable products?
Tati Guimarães: "Now more than ever it is crucial that we think environmentally. It’s not simply a passing fashion: it’s a respectful attitude. Ecodesign projects not only save resources, they also make the production process profitable. At Ciclus, materials are always selected for their sustainability, taking into account their practicality, durability and elegance. In this way, products have a longer useful life span."

About the founder of Ciclus, Tati Guimarães
"I’ve always got immense pleasure out of producing beautiful new things, out of old, thrown-away materials. I've never stopped believing that a more humane and sustainable way of life is possible. My interest for eco design stems from there and for some years now I have explored new ways of investigating, learning and experimenting with it," says Brazilian designer Tati Guimarães, founder of the eco-design label Ciclus.

Tati Guimarães, born in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) on 19 April 1976, studied graphic and industrial design at Universidad PUC in Rio de Janeiro. She has worked for design studios in Brazil such as Tátil (www.tatil.com.br) as a product designer and also as a graphic designer and collaborated with designer Jair de Souza on cultural projects.

In 1998 Tati Guimarães travelled to Spain. In Barcelona she worked as graphic designer and art director in design studios and advertising agencies. Simultaneously, Tati completed courses in Materials Science at Barcelona’s design school Escola Massana and studied jewellery making in El Taller. Since 2001 Tati Guimarães participates in contests and has gained recognitation for her innovative ideas on ecological accessories www.ciclus.com.


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fig.: Halfmoon Bracelet, Ciclus, 2009.