About

“Telling stories through materials” is the best way of describing the work of the art and design studio Folkform. Do you know where, how and by whom the things you surround yourself are made?

We live in a time when we have less and less knowledge of manufacturing. Most things are produced so far away from their end consumer that there is no connection with the maker. Traditionally, there were direct connections between a factory, its workers, the place in which it was located, and the locally available materials used in its production. Today, this system has broken down in favour of globalised manufacturing that is anonymous and inaccessible. It is these, often forgotten, stories, that Folkform captures through its design process.

Folkform was founded by Chandra Ahlsell and Anna Holmquist in 2005. Since the studio’s foundation, it has worked with the design of furniture and objects to communicate an understanding of industrial heritage and the people, places and processes behind it. The practice often highlights manufacturing techniques that have been lost or else transferred elsewhere around the world, and explores the associated knowledge that has been passed on from generation to generation.

Folkform has a fascination for materials and the way in which they can lead the way for further cultural exploration.

Folkform’s founders Chandra Ahlsell (b.1973) and Anna Holmquist (b.1978) studied industrial design at Konstfack in Stockholm. Ahlsell also studied at Pratt Institute in New York and Holmquist at Goldsmiths in London. Folkform has received the Future Design Days Award, The Lauritz Icon Award, Residence Big Design Prize, The Bruno Mathsson Prize and The Scandinavian Design Award.

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Credits
Webdesign by: Hawkan
Photos by: Erik Lefvander, Kjell B Persson, Magnus Laupa, Andrea Johnson, Emma Nilsson & Andreas Lundberg
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