Lauren Palazzi

Brand and experience-focused designer shaping how brands show up across product, storytelling, and physical space. I work at the intersection of strategy and aesthetics, translating research and business insight into thoughtful, emotionally resonant design.

With a background in Business Administration, I bring systems thinking to creative work. I am currently pursuing my MFA in Products of Design at the School of Visual Arts, where my thesis explores the decline of traditional heirlooms and reimagines how legacy, identity, and emotional context can be preserved across both physical and digital forms in an increasingly transient world.


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Are.na






Project Type
Product Design 
Branding Team
Lauren Palazzi 
Jessie Wang
Tong Zhao Duration
2 months


The ARC Teapot: Reimagining the Ritual of Tea


ARC is a porcelain teapot that reimagines the act of pouring through a gentle tilting motion. Designed in response to a brief centered on the idea of home, the project explores how everyday rituals can shape our sense of comfort and presence. Resting on a Calacatta marble base, the teapot pivots forward when touched, allowing tea to pour through a controlled arc. This simple shift in interaction encourages a slower and more attentive tea ritual.




Idea of Home 


ARC began with a simple brief: design an object that represents the idea of home. Rather than focusing on furniture or architecture, our team looked at the small rituals that shape everyday life. Moments like brewing tea, sharing a drink, or taking a pause in the middle of a busy day.

These gestures are often automatic. We rarely stop to think about the objects that support them. My primary role in the project was developing the product concept and brand story that guided the design.


Rethinking the PourTraditional teapots require lifting the vessel to pour. While functional, the gesture can feel abrupt and disconnected from the calm ritual that tea service often represents.

We explored how the interaction itself could be softened.
The result was a teapot designed to tilt rather than lift. Resting on a solid base, the vessel pivots forward when touched, allowing tea to pour through a slow and controlled arc. The motion is simple and intuitive, but it subtly changes the experience. Instead of quickly lifting and pouring, the user engages with a small, deliberate gesture. This idea of balance and controlled movement became the foundation of the design.






Form & Material Exploration
The teapot holds approximately 12 ounces, intended for two cups of tea and a shared moment between people. Its double-walled porcelain body keeps tea warm while keeping the vessel light in weight. 

The vessel rests on a carved Calacatta marble base that serves as both a visual anchor and a counterweight. Rather than lifting the pot, the user gently tilts it forward. The marble stabilizes the motion while the porcelain body moves through a controlled arc.

During early exploration, we studied balancing forms that naturally pivot through gravity. Birds tipping forward to eat and classic dipping bird toys both became references for how an object could lean forward and return smoothly to its resting position.

Although the two pieces are not physically attached, the base's geometry securely holds the teapot. When placed together, the forms naturally align and lock into position.

Throughout development, we produced multiple prototypes to test:
  • Balance and pivot point
  • The interaction between the vessel and base
  • Spout height relative to the pouring angle 
  • The overall proportions of the teapot


These iterations helped refine the motion so the pour felt smooth, stable, and intuitive.

If produced commercially, the porcelain vessel would likely be slip-cast, while the marble base could be CNC-milled and hand-finished to achieve its sculpted form.







Designing the ARC Language
The name ARC comes directly from the gesture of pouring. As the teapot tilts forward, the motion traces a gentle curve through space. This movement informed the project's visual identity.

The color palette draws from quiet natural tones. Warm clay hues reference ceramics and earth, soft greens evoke calm and stillness, and deep charcoal tones introduce contrast and structure.

Together, these elements create a visual language that reflects the same balance present in the object itself.




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