Tale of two halves: Wüstenberg creates curious craft

Wiltshire, Hamburg – In anticipation of this year’s Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan, LS:N Global visited the workspaces of German-Finnish designer Pia Wüstenberg in Hamburg and Wiltshire for an insight into the production processes behind her Branch Bowls, which will be exhibited at Edit by Design Junction in Milan next week.

A haptic hybrid of two traditional crafts and materials, the vessels are created using glass-blowing and woodworking processes. ‘I like to work with traditional making processes and challenge them to do things they don’t want to do,’ Wüstenberg tells LS:N Global. The pieces are made from rich gem-toned, hand-blown glass and a single wooden branch, sourced from Wüstenberg’s native Finland for its specific organic shape that makes each bowl unique.

During the glass-blowing process the branch is pushed into the hot glass opening to shape the glass by charring and burning into it. The branch then eventually forms the lid of the bowl. ‘For this particular collection it was about finding the appropriate materials, working with the natural surface of the wood, and challenging the two materials to fit together and work in unison.’

Branch Bowls will be exhibited in Design Junction in the Brera Design District of Milan Design Week. Read more about Wüstenberg’s experimental craft practices in our Portfolio feature.

LS:N Global will be reporting from Milan all week, so keep an eye on our Seed and Shows sections.