The last straw: Designers revive Nordic craft

18 : 04 : 2012 Editions In Craft : Farmer's Gold : Milan Design Week

Milan – Swedish design collective Editions in Craft presented a group exhibition called Farmer’s Gold at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile show that explores the loss of traditional Nordic straw craft, and the relationship between cultural heritage and contemporary practice.

One Square Straw by Katrin Greiling, Farmer's Gold One Square Straw by Katrin Greiling, Farmer's Gold
StrawWool Stool by Company, Farmer's Gold StrawWool Stool by Company, Farmer's Gold

‘We asked ourselves, why is craft disappearing?’ Renée Padt, co-founder of Editions in Craft, tells LS:N Global. ‘The irony is that in places like Sweden craft is only celebrated at Christmas and even then it’s made in China.’

In an attempt to re-invent traditional Swedish straw-weaving, the project invited international designers such as Studio FormaFantasma, Sagovolvo and Katrin Greiling to the isolated Swedish province of Dalsland. In a series of workshops the group collaborated with 40 local craftswomen to create a series of unique products, presented for the first time in Milan this week.

For more reports from Milan see our preview in our Shows section and keep an eye on our Seed section and Twitter feed for live coverage.

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