Bosnian craft brand Zanat has called upon its international roster of designers to create a collection inspired by the isolation resulting from pandemic-related lockdowns implemented across the world in the past few months. ‘The recent lockdown has been a good opportunity to stay closer to our household members, to relax a bit and ponder about the future, the human condition and what truly matters to us,’ says founder Orhan Niksic.
The origins of Zanat date back more than a century, when Niksic’s great grandfather stumbled on a primitive hand-carving technique that originated near his hometown of Konjic. He established a woodcarving workshop and passed the now Unesco-protected technique down through family generations. Niksic started Zanat in 2015 with the aim of preserving this family legacy and he saw the recent pandemic as a chance to discuss themes of family and home.
On the wall, Monica Förster's Eclipse Mirror, part of the Lockdown Dialogues collection
Niksic took up discussions with some of Europe’s most celebrated designers, including Monica Förster, Ilse Crawford, Sebastian Herkner, Jean-Marie Massaud and Ludovica and Roberto Palomba. ‘Their enthusiasm about post-Covid-19 future and how Zanat’s vision relates to it was both heartening and inspiring,’ he says. ‘We all agreed that the future cannot look like the past, that environmental sustainability and ethics pertaining to how products are made, brought to market, and consumed can no longer be a matter of choice, but must be a design imperative.’ And so the Lockdown Dialogues Project was born as a way to channel these ideas and create objects that reflect this vision of ethical design.
‘Our aim was to create a collection of functional objects that improve the experience of staying at home and hopefully become heirloom pieces, objects made from responsibly sourced, renewable natural materials that clearly demonstrate the value of craftsmanship.’ The collection includes mirrors by Förster, stools and candleholders by the Palombas, and bowls by Crawford among others. They are small objects whose carefully considered craftsmanship, Nikisic hopes, can enrich our lives while creating employment opportunities as well as preserving important artisanal skills and cultural heritage.
Kioko Boxes by Jean-Marie Massaud
Jean-Marie Massaud's Kioko trays, displayed on top of a folding table by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba
Sebastian Herkner's series of trays
Also designed by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba is the Stonehenge Stool, pictured here
A series of bowls and platters featuring Zanat's distinctive carved motif and designed by Ilse Crawford
INFORMATION
The Lockdown Dialogues collection by Zanat is available from Wallpaper*STORE
-
Colourful card game wins Design Museum’s Design Ventura competitionAnnual design competition Design Ventura was won by students from The Piggott School, who created a fun Eye Spy-inspired card game
-
Tour a Chilean pavilion perched on the coast: a sanctuary for sleep and star-gazingAlgarrobo-based architecture studio Whale! has designed a Chilean pavilion for rest and relaxation, overlooking a nature reserve on the Pacific coast
-
Step into Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron's dreamy photographs in London'Portraits to Dream In' is currently on show at London's National Portrait Gallery
-
Discover the brands redefining the marijuana experienceContemporary brands have made efforts to redesign the experience of marijuana: these the names to look out for, from community-centered dispensaries to elegant objects
-
Abask, a new curated shopping website, highlights handmade designAbask presents a curated online design shopping experience, thanks to a team of antique enthusiasts, craftspeople and designers
-
Hay Play reinterprets classic table gamesNewly-launched Hay Play takes the Danish brand’s sleek design and colourful attitude to popular table games, from backgammon to chess and yatzy
-
Can design help us better understand the future?Yosuke Ushigome, the self-styled ‘creative technologist’ and director at design studio Takram on the power of speculative design to make ideas tangible, humanise big data, and encourage healthier behaviours
-
Pentatonic and Natalia Vodianova launch innovative face maskNatalia Vodianova and Pentatonic unveil Masuku one, their new high-tech, sustainable mask design featuring state of the art filtration system and made in England
-
Reclaimed materials transformed into terrazzo by Ajoto and Olivia AspinallWe take a look at how British writing instruments brand Ajoto uses the waste from its pen manufacturing process to create a minimal pen rest, in collaboration with artisan Olivia Aspinall
-
Alessi’s centenary collection celebrates design masters from Sottsass to CastiglioniThroughout the year, Alessi has been launching new collections celebrating 100 years of design excellence and creativity, with special editions of iconic pieces by Ettore Sottsass, Achille Castiglioni, Philippe Starck and more. We speak to Alberto Alessi to discover his company's story of design
-
Portable handwashing station wins Life-Enhancer of the Year: Wallpaper* Design Awards 2021Responding swiftly to a public health emergency, Lagos designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello devised a portable, modular handwashing station that draws on local materials and manufacturing expertise
