Robert Foster’s Fink water jug is an Australian design classic and perhaps the most recognisable design object to come out of the country. The company’s first product remains its flagship.
Whilst the fluid form of the jug is an obvious reference to the liquid contained within, the shape is actually the result of Foster’s search for the perfect pour.
Unlike the vast majority of jugs and carafes the Fink water jug doesn’t go glug, glug, glug and it doesn’t drip.
For these reasons and for its obvious aesthetic appeal the Fink jug is held in major collections around the world and is regularly found in the world’s great restaurants.
In 2021 in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, Fink & Co collaborated with 16 artists, makers and designers to produce 32 one-off versions of the iconic Fink water jug. One of those collaborations was with multidisciplinary Australian designer Tom Skeehan*.
In the process of producing Skeehan’s two designs Fink & Co’s material research developed a new anodising method enabling a gradation of colour, highlighting the fluid process of anodising surface finishing and the legacy of experimentation created by Robert Foster.
Anodising a Fink Jug is done by immersing the vessel into a series of caustic and RO water baths and then into an acid electrolyte bath which passes an electric current through the Jug to create an oxidised skin that hardens the aluminium and allows the skin to be coloured.
BLUSH describes the sensual change in colour from a deep Bordeaux red, through a series of soft rosy hues before culminating at the aluminium’s original silver at the lip.
Making a gradated jug is an extremely time consuming process – each jug is anodised for three hours. Achieving this complex finish is inherently difficult. Fink & Co has developed a unique technique to control the speed and depth the jug enters the dyes resulting in a sublime soft gradient.
Each limited-edition satin BLUSH jug will be slightly different and only 50 Blush jugs will be made.
Materials: Anodized aluminium with a cast aluminium handle
Finish: Satin hand textured
Capacity: 1.45 litres
Height: 30cm
Base diameter: approximately 10cm (slightly ovoid)
N.B.: Handwash only – NOT dishwasher safe
