Tactile Qualities – Pulp Furniture Collection by Serra Studio

Mike Ruiz-Serra’s Pulp furniture collection combines post-consumer paper pulp and OSB in tactile, sculptural forms.

An area of craft I’ve been thinking a lot about lately is the potential found in a natural material, wondering whether this is one of the main reasons why makers are drawn to handiwork over other mediums of creative expression. This ability to take a material that has such strong ties to nature and fashion an object from it. Of course, nature’s sacred essence can only be partly tamed. A word of caution for anyone looking for complete control.

Mike Ruiz-Serra, a designer based in New York, has fabricated these unique pieces of furniture made from 100% post consumer paper pulp and OSB. On the same wavelength as a previous article featuring the work of Kosuke Araki, a Japanese designer who used food waste to make lacquer objects, these pieces turn to our wastage of paper and incorporate wooden chips to make forms that are tactile but still functional.

This rough, tactile quality was what I enjoyed most from a design standpoint. Mike’s choice not to hide the material, letting it shine and selecting fairly monolithic shapes compared to the current trend of clean lines found in the contemporary design was a breathe of fresh air. I also thought this is an amazing way to sculpt objects thanks to the material being so malleable. I look forward to seeing what other pieces are made in this series.

serrastudio.org

Recovered original cover — blue Pulp bench against a burlap backdrop · Design: Mike Ruiz-Serra / Serra Studio. Original OEN image.

Pulp collection — white Quad Coffee Table, low three-quarter view · Design: Mike Ruiz-Serra / Serra Studio. Image source: Sight Unseen OFFSITE 2020 exhibitor catalogue.

Pulp collection — white Quad Coffee Table, underside showing the four rounded legs · Design: Mike Ruiz-Serra / Serra Studio. Image source: Sight Unseen OFFSITE 2020 exhibitor catalogue.