Artek, Hender Scheme Launch Furniture Shoes
A 91-year-old Finnish furniture brand and a 15-year-old Japanese leather shoemaker have collaborated on a collection launching in October, featuring handmade leather accessories for iconic designs, including small shoes for furniture legs.
Artek and Hender Scheme have created a joint collection launching globally on October 10. The collaboration between the 91-year-old Finnish furniture company and the 15-year-old Japanese leather shoemaker centers on handmade leather accessories for iconic designs.
The Core Idea
Its most immediate idea is shoes for furniture. The bent-birch legs of Alvar Aalto's Stool 60 and Table 90C can now be fitted with small, vegetable-tanned leather covers. These are inspired by storm-welt construction, a shoemaking technique for water resistance. Hender Scheme founder Ryo Kashiwazaki explained the concept came from their identity as shoemakers.
Shared Philosophy
Simple as that sounds, a deeper story unfolds. Artek and Hender Scheme approach natural materials in much the same way: the older they get, the better. Artek uses wild birch that retains knots and insect trails. Hender Scheme's vegetable-tanned leather comes with its inherent scars and stretch marks intact. Neither company seeks to iron out these irregularities.
Design and Aging
This philosophy extends to design. Kashiwazaki emphasizes letting materials age naturally. The trick is to not treat them too much. Over time, the pale leather will darken and develop a patina, just as the birch wood gradually changes color. The point is to let that happen.
A Light Touch
Kashiwazaki approached Artek's nearly century-old design legacy with a light touch. His instinct was to add something small yet distinct. He aimed to not do too much, but to add something very small, yet very different. This is clear in the stool and table covers.
Subtle Interventions
Elsewhere, the interventions are more subtle. A leather clock, key holder, and coasters take their shape from Aino Aalto's Riihitie ceramic plant pots, which she designed in 1937 for the terrace of her Helsinki home. The Pendant Lamp A330 Golden Bell - originally introduced in the 1950s - receives a new three-piece leather shade. This shade is wet-formed over a 3D-printed mold, a mix of old and new that Kashiwazaki calls new craft.
A Long-Term Vision Kashiwazaki's ultimate test for the collaboration is temporal. Furniture can last decades or centuries. His dream is to see one of these pieces turn up in Artek's Helsinki Second Cycle resale store in 20 or 30 years. He said it would be really great if a product returned there one day for someone to buy.
Launch Information Following a preview in Paris last June, the collection will be publicly unveiled at Vitra's Tramshed showroom in Shoreditch during the London Design Festival, where it will be on view from September 15 to 19. It launches globally on October 10.
