A branch
becomes
...
The project started by collecting natural remains - mushrooms, branches, bark, sand - in the forest in Eindhoven, which became part of a documentation on our surroundings. Our interest grew in unnoticed and unexpected details : marks of animals, bugs patterns, growth rings, cracks, traces of natural phenomenons, all considered as damaged signs on trees. The exploration extended to shapes and volumes, as we realized that our usual way of connecting with nature is to find function within.
A log becomes a table, a branch becomes a hanger, a trunk becomes a bench…
The following series of furniture results from our simple interaction with the forest. Postures, activities, functions and dimensions are entirely guided by the findings, creating the standards in our design. By using dying branches and logs for firewood, we look for surprising qualities while emphasize the surroundings of the pieces. Simply connected together, the furnitures are traces of the ecosystem they grew in. Through the details of the skin and the imperfect features, tactility emerges from the daily use, creating a dialogue between human activities and forest phenomenons in the domestic space.
Those marks, less valuable in the timber industry, bring awareness around materials used in furniture making. As machinery is made for manufactured forms, the approach is necessarily slow and in close contact with the material.
Collaboration with Marie Le Gars
2022
Design Academy
Eindhoven
