The study of construction and representation is to recognize the practice and the involvement of the people and their working knowledge within the making of objects. Thus, what would it take to turn a rock into a sheet of metal? What is the weight, metaphysical and physical, of the table when joining the raw material with the industrial one? In the efforts to deindustrialize and decolonize design with craft, a representation of the process and the people involved is paramount.
process and philosophy of metalworking
The wooden stamp stub sits in the back side of the table with the red signature is my own, a character stamp of my name, given by my Ama and Akong.
The side table is an exploration of different tools that partake in the making process of the material. Can the celebration of the process become part of the final object? The wedge and shims used in masonry work now become the mechanical fastener for holding the rock to the table’s frame. In the extension of the process, bringing the tools used in breaking the rock to fit the frame.The washers at the base and those that hold the metal frame to itself are temporarily acrylic; due to the constraints of designing my own washers for the table, the acrylic fabrication of them was the most accessible at the time. They will be in final form metal to keep the language of the project cohesive.
