Håndverk+ showcases design objects that symbolise transformation
Giant flower sculptures, a chair made out of tree stumps and a set of mini troughs all feature in a showcase of design and craft at Galleri Format Oslo.
The Oslo gallery is presenting the fifth edition of Håndverk+, an annual project that brings together emerging designers and makers to create experimental objects.
The exhibition features 19 projects, each designed to respond to the theme Transformation. Some explore a transformation through material or process, while others refer to movements of the body or changes in nature.
Among the most eye-catching pieces in the show are Nora Kielland's tulip sculptures, which she created using clay, plaster and chicken wire.
Marthine Spinnangr's highly textured earthenware chair takes its cues from dance movements, while Kaja Dahl and Njål Andreassen present an object that could be a seat or a table, made out of two pine tree stumps.
Smaller objects on show include Guri Sandvik's multi-tonal clay bowls, which takes their cues from traditional Norwegian troughs, and a trio of wooden dishes by Jenkins & Uhnger.
Norwegian design collective Fold Oslo produced a playful collection of hooks and handles, all made out of scrap material from the Linaker furniture workshop.
One of the collective's members, Anna Maria Øfstedal Eng, also contributed a hanging wooden sculpture featuring unique patterns in its grain.
It was made using sour birch, which is wood was harvested after it has fallen and was already under attack by fungus.
Also using waste wood, Fredrik Bull and Ali Shah Gallefoss teamed up to create abstract furniture pieces that interlock thanks to zigzagging surfaces.
The only textile work in the show comes from Elisabeth Stray Pedersen, founder of fashion label ESP, who has turned fabric offcuts into multi-purpose garments. Her designs include a jacket that doubles as a blanket and a seat pad that can be used as a bag.
Other works include Anette Krogstad's ceramic flowers and Ytre's aluminium reinterpretation of the traditional milk stool.
Exhibition curator Kirsten Visdal said the aim behind the theme Transformation was to tap into "political and societal shifts which undoubtedly affect how we express ourselves through aesthetics and function".
"There lies a risk in unsettling something deap-seated when we touch upon the ingrained, the safe and the traditional," she said.
"At the same time, transformation is a tool that lets us give tribute to cultural heritage, by creating new interpretations, new stories and new objects to carry on the tradition," she continued.
"This enables new identity and new safe spaces for future generations."
Håndverk+ is on show at Galleri Format Oslo from 22 September to 30 October 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.