Surfaces to sap

Since I was old enough to hold a hammer I have been making things out of wood; as a furniture maker, boat builder and now as a designer. In all these disciplines I applied wood but always in a relatively traditional rigid way. Could I surprise myself with this rich material even after being so familiar with it.

I started with researching the changing appearance of wood when it is being exposed to daylight. From there I started to look closer on how the material is build up. With this information, I began to look at wood in a broader sense, as a source of materials like tar and acids. At one moment I even discovered that it’s possible to tap a refreshing drink from birch trees.

Empowered by this miraculous drink that gives energy after winter, I focused on the birch as a location with a series of objects to tap the tree and catch the sap. To protect the wooden objects against the outside conditions they have a brown tar finish that I have extracted from the birch-bark. 

The pieces are permanently set around the tree waiting for the celebration of spring and the birch as a rich source of materials.


Year:
2013
Category:
Objects