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Anti-depressants
Written by: Štěpánka Strouhalová
Photo by: Věroslav Sixt

	Daria Podboj

Mix one part playfulness, one part wit and one part optimism together with a carefree weightlessness, and you will be left with a characteristic design for Daria Podboj - a veritable pitcher of sparkling, refreshing, raspberry lemonade.

DARIA PODBOJ, a student at the Institute of Applied Art from the former Yugoslavia, had already won a contest organized by Design Centrum and Philips for energy saving lights in her second year of studies. Podboj designed a child's hanging lamp named Pedro that is now produced and sold, in several different colors, by the Czech firm Rendl. Her talent also shot this young designer onto the international stage when she introduced a table named Eat Me at trade fairs in Milan and Frank-furt. She had originally created it for last year's Art & Interior exhibition of design, which had the theme "Light in Coria". "Because of its size, this table is suitable for cafés, and is a bit of a joke that comes into play the moment light shines through the thinned out board," Podboj explains. "When you turn on your desk lamp, a plate and silverware motif appear in front of you. Coria is thinned from the inside, so at first glance you don't realize how this is happening."
This designer is in her element when she can develop her juicy and playfully girlish attitude within an object, whether it involves t-shirt prints or a collection of costume jewelry which wittily resonates with the latest fashion trends. Some cheerful, colorful bracelets and necklaces are still only in the design stage, but jeweler Jiří Belda is already producing and selling her rings made from a combination of perspex and coria. Podboj insists that for now her designs are no big deal. "They are just for fun; wit and a certain weightlessness are important," she says. "I don't even mind denying the functional aspect of a product - although that goes against accepted rules of design. For now, I'm not doing anything so serious that I can't derive any joy from it," adds this designer, whose optimism could bring frivolity to something as serious as a wheelchair.

In praise of breakfast Don't deny your stomach - maintain a morning ritual before it's too late. Playful "Duplo" - a cleverly shaped saucer can also be used as an egg holder. Cup with saucer CZK 380, Fantazie. Royal discipline. Cup with saucer CZK 795, sugar bowl CZK 1,349, milk dispenser CZK 612, coffee pot CZK 1,735, Naoko. Let's have a spot of tea! Tea set Ono: teapot CZK 1,450, small bowl CZK 330, cup CZK 195, de.co; tray CZK 5,660. Luis. 1+1=3: gray ASA cups, CZK 280 and 300, ceramic ASA saucer, CZK 300. Luis.