While the design art trend would have us laugh in the face of mass manufacturing, there are plenty of companies that mass-produce furniture with a strong and honest sense of handcraft. Japanese wood company Maruni is one such beacon, running with the slogan of ‘industrializing craftwork’ and their latest collection by Naoto Fukasawa is all the proof we need that machines can produce furniture with character.
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Their 2008 collection consists of a series of dining chairs, tables, upholstered chairs and sofas in three series: the Traditional series, Hiroshima series and Next Maruni. What’s striking is that each piece has a refined, fresh-from-the-carpenter’s- workshop feel that belies its manufactured origins.
‘Since its beginning in 1928, Maruni has succeeded in its endeavours to utilize the kind of complicated techniques that had previously only been possible with handcrafted products, with industrial products, turning out a great deal of high quality wooden furniture,’ says Fukasawa of the company’s heritage.
Of his own involvement, he explains, ‘I had always wanted to design a good wooden chair. I believe that it is not just about the shape of the chair; it’s something that is realised with a high degree of craftsmanship and a great deal of experience with respect to structural ingenuity. My encounter with Maruni translated this belief into reality.’
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