Sitting in Switzerland

The idea was really just tables. I have become enamored with tables and it started with the ones I saw on my recent trip to Switzerland.

We were high up in the Jungfrau region, a couple hours outside Geneva in quaint mountain towns during a rainy week. I first saw a single empty cappuccino cup on a booth table in the cafe aboard the Lötschberg steamship, which sails across Lake Brienz twice a day.

It got me thinking about how we use tables: how we leave them at restaurants, place them in our homes, where we choose to sit, and how we come to these conclusions.

I like to stack my dishes when I’m done at a restaurant. My partner and I sit directly across from each other at two-tops but next to each other at larger tables. With family or friend meals, I tend to choose a chair second from one of the corners.

These moments are a snapshot of a communal human moment: a ritual we share. We set the table with intention. We sit down to feed ourselves, yes, but also to share our time with those who are at the table with us. And when we’ve finished, we’ve left a tableau of what our ceremony looked like.