Kórero (Maori for stories) is the result of a study in aesthetic communication, with case in the New Zealand Maoris.

I designed this little furniture family, on the basis of a comprehensive ethnographic study of Maoris, performed during a two-month study in New Zealand! The Maori culture is particularly interesting in relation to the aesthetic communication, because of the culture revolving around a continuous distribution of their ancestors - and history - through the art..

This thesis is about storytelling and innovation. The project has emerged as a cultural encounter between scandianvian furniture design - and a distinctive culture. The design process led to Kórero - a family of furniture, each of which tells a story that defines elements taken from Maori philosophy.
This Stool Koro (Grandfather) - describes the situation of sitting on the lap of a grandparrent, and listen to good old stories..

 

The cabinet - Puku - tells a story about secrets and the latent potential that exists before everything begins!

Puku has an apperance of being hard and closed, but it also reveals a peak into the soft interieur. The deepest inner is evenmore hidden by a foreclosure of fringes - that has you can run your fingers through to sense by hand.

The coffee table - Tútara - invites to openness and communication. The shape and ornaments are inspired by a well known conversation generator - the weather - and therefore weather sattelites.
All 3 furniture is the result of an alternative design process, where concepts from the ethnographic studies have fueled the sketching process and thereby directed these designs!