YUPO Synthetic Paper Designs at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile

April 13, 2005 | Levent OZLER

Innovative Canadian Design goes to Milan
YUPO Synthetic Paper Designs at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile
April 13-18, 2005, Milan, Italy

Architect and paper design whiz Liming Rao, who has made a splash in North America with his YUPO synthetic paper based products, has been selected by Nice Design (Pavilion 9, booth D3/5/7) a coalition of young Canadian designers, to bring his fresh products across the Atlantic to the International Milan Furniture Show (Salone Internazionale del Mobile) in Milan, Italy, April 13-18, 2005.

While dining on sushi one evening, Rao was inspired to create an eating tray. Countless prototypes later, he developed the reusable Paper Serving Tray using YUPO synthetic paper. The tray folds upon itself and forms its own structural support without any other materials or adhesive. The paper provides maximum support with minimum use of material based on precisely calculated scored lines and a simple folding technique,

The underside of the tray is made of two facing half circles, creating the support for the surface of the tray, and then sloping outward to create a thin profile that gives the illusion of floating.

The Paper Serving Tray was created using 100 lb. YUPO Cover Stock. "I chose YUPO synthetic paper for its functionality and beauty. It has exceptional tear resistance and structural stability, along with a smooth feel and brilliant whiteness that made it ideal for the project," says Rao. YUPO is 100% waterproof, grease and chemical resistant, and completely recyclable. "It was important that the tray be reusable, and only YUPO's durability and water resistance allow the user to actually clean the tray with soap and water."

"The greatest difficulty in creating the tray was finding just the right amount of pressure to apply to create seamless folds without bulging," Rao explains.

In addition to the Serving Tray, which is available in three sizes (4x8, 8x8, 12x12), Rao has created a full line of distinctive paper product prototypes including: Designer Plate (also in various sizes), Vase Slip which uses YUPO translucent and can be printed on for customization, Picture Frames in various sizes, and a Wine Traveler.

About Liming Rao
Liming Rao started his career as an interior designer in Montreal, but his love of the three-dimensional took him into a career as an architect in Toronto. He currently works for Hariri Pontarini Architects, the firm that became famous for designing the "Bahá'í Temple for South America" in Santiago, Chile, a flowering lotus-like structure of staggering beauty.

Rao's passion doesn't stop at designing buildings inside and out, he dreamed of creating furniture and functional products that are fresh and exciting to the eye. He started experimenting with different materials and became fascinated with the idea of using paper to create structure. "Paper has always been the beginning of any design project,"
explains Rao, "to look at it beyond its obvious function, to use its tactile and visual appeal to create structure fascinated me."

However, he was frustrated with the short lifecycle of his projects- his paper creations quickly got dirty, wrinkled, and ruined, and while they were beautiful to look at and environmentally friendly, they were not functional. Rao once again sought an alternative material, something that would have the visual and tactile quality of paper but offer practical functionality. That's how he discovered YUPO paper, the durable synthetic substrate that combines the best attributes of traditional paper and synthetic film.

Rao's Paper Serving Tray was recognized with the Ontario Architects Association Award and the 2004 Yupo Wally Awards, an annual design competition for projects using YUPO. The Yupo Wally Awards were judged by a distinguished group of graphic designers, publishers and printers who evaluated submissions based on creativity, originality, and functionality. Rao has also been selected by Nice Design, a design collective, to exhibit this award-winning product, as part of a booth that will highlight young Canadian designers at the Milan International Furniture Fair.

Liming Rao holds patents on the technique in the US and Canada. His prototypes are available on a made-to-order basis.

Liming Rao can be reached at: Tel: 1 (416) 450-6568 or Email: raooo mac.com

About Yupo Corporation America
Yupo has more than three decades experience in the research and development of synthetic papers for numerous applications within the technical paper and commercial printing industries. Yupo Corporation America is a wholly owned subsidiary of Yupo Corporation (Tokyo, Japan), the world's largest manufacturer of synthetic paper.

YUPO synthetic paper is available in sheets and rolls in a variety of grades. In addition to its tear and stain resistant properties, YUPO is 100% waterproof and 100 % recyclable.