The Niemeyer's Taste embodies a design philosophy that blends art, traditional craftsmanship, and technology to honor the legacy of one of the 20th century's greatest artists, architect Oscar Niemeyer. With his organic shapes and bold curves, Niemeyer made concrete bend to his will, spearheading the modernist movement. Café Orfeu, the most internationally awarded Brazilian coffee brand, assembled a team of visual artists, ceramists, designers, and AI prompters to shed light on his work. But this time concrete gave way to porcelain and designs were crafted using cutting-edge technology.

The Niemeyer's Taste is a porcelain coffee cup collection that uses technology, machine learning, and artificial intelligence as design tools. However, its final pieces are highly artisanal, making industrial-scale reproduction impossible. Each piece is unique, numbered, and bears the co-authorship between Niemeyer's distinctive style and the team of artists assembled for this project.

2024 marks the 12th anniversary of Niemeyer's passing, an artist widely regarded as one of modern architecture's key figures. His unique perspective is evident in over hundreds of buildings worldwide. Despite being a pinnacle of contemporary architecture, his legacy is slowly fading, especially among Brazil's newer generations. Café Orfeu developed and cultivated a special microbatch around a church designed by Niemeyer, situated in a coffee plantation that echoes the curves of his work and draws inspiration from Brazil's bold flavors, capturing the essence of Niemeyer's style. In an increasingly globalized world, traditional Brazilian art styles are losing prominence in the media. The Niemeyer's Taste is a breath of art with an authentically Brazilian flavor, aligning with a coffee brand that values our national art in all its forms.

Café Orfeu is a proud Brazilian brand of specialty coffees. In honor of the world-famous architect Oscar Niemeyer, the brand has crafted a special micro-batch to solidify its presence in the art world. Launching a coffee like the Niemeyer Special Edition required more than a traditional campaign—it demanded reverence for the architect's greatness. Even on a budget, the goal was to honor his visionary perspective while creating a lasting tribute to his work. Café Orfeu's initiative highlights Brazil's cultural heritage, blending Niemeyer's architectural influence with the nation's celebrated coffee culture.

How could a brand like Café Orfeu, a staunch supporter of Brazilian art, further integrate itself into Brazilian culture while preserving its most significant artistic symbols? How can it provide its target audience with the opportunity to explore Brazilian art on a sensory journey, echoing the experience offered by its coffee? The answer lies in leveraging the latest technology and the finest artistry. This is not merely a tech project; artificial intelligence doesn't replace artists but enhances the vision of a multidisciplinary team. And that's how The Niemeyer's Taste project was born–a fusion of Brazilian artists and technology, creating a collection of porcelain coffee cups that pay homage to one of Brazil's greatest designers.

It all began with a significant "what if" moment: what if we could witness Niemeyer's style reborn in a place the world has never seen before? The first step was assembling a team of multidisciplinary artists to analyze his 600 projects and thousands of sketches. After extensive deliberation and collaboration between them team and Niemeyer's family, and utilizing AI and machine learning, a fitting tribute emerged in the form of a Niemeyer-inspired coffee cup collection. The second step involved developing a new porcelain body clay, gathering rock sediments from across Brazil (reminiscent of Niemeyer's buildings) to mimic the look and feel of concrete. An exclusive porcelain enamel was also created to achieve the desired finish. A team of ceramicists meticulously hand-sculpted each cup, resulting in unique, numbered pieces. Finally, the porcelain coffee cup collection was unveiled at SP Arte, one of the largest art fairs in Latin America.

The launch was a great success, attracting media and public attention to the brand. It received extensive coverage in both technology and art sectors, reaching a wide range of audiences interested in trying the Niemeyer Special Edition microbatch. Several museums have already expressed interest in incorporating the porcelain cup of coffee collection into their permanent exhibitions, elevating the brand's reputation and relevance in the Brazilian market and leaving a lasting taste of Niemeyer's style for generations to come.