Skip To Main Content
Issue 64 - The 'Future' Issue

Issue 64

The 'Future' Issue

Habitus #64 Welcome to the HABITUS ‘Future’ and ‘Habitus House of the Year’ Issue. We are thrilled to have interior designer of excellence, Brahman Perera, as Guest Editor and to celebrate his Sri Lankan heritage through an interview with Palinda Kannangara and his extraordinary Ek Onkar project – divine! Thinking about the future, we look at the technology shaping our approach to sustainability and the ways traditional materials are enjoying a new-found place in the spotlight. Profiles on Yvonne Todd, Amy Lawrance, and Kallie Blauhorn are rounded out with projects from Studio ZAWA, SJB, Spirit Level, STUDIOLIVE, Park + Associates and a Lake House made in just 40 days by the wonderful Wutopia Lab, plus the short list for the Habitus House of the Year!

Order Issue

A Product of

Canberra designer Ashley Eriksmoen wins prestigious Australian Furniture Design Award
Design StoriesCaelan Kaluder

Canberra designer Ashley Eriksmoen wins prestigious Australian Furniture Design Award

2022’s Australian Furniture Design Award goes to Ashley Eriksmoen, for her entry ‘The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent.’


Ashley Eriksmoen has been named 2022’s Australian Furniture Design Award (AFDA) winner by Stylecraft and the National Gallery of Victoria. As one of Australia’s most prestigious furniture design awards, Eriksmoen’s entry caught the jury’s attention with its exceptional and confronting design.

Canberra based, Eriksmoen’s practise breaks down the foundations of furniture’s boundaries. Her entry parallels her practice, rejecting ideals of resources and waste.

AFDA_Ashley Eriksmoen The Dream
Winning Entry, “The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent”, photography supplied by Ashley Eriksmoen.

Her entry, ‘The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent’, takes a pronounced stance in criticising waste practices and reforming furniture designs. The chaise is constructed from discarded timber; its palette references the rise of modernism on the Australian landscape. Its design brings two conflicting feelings. The user can either feel comforted by its utility or be haunted with eco-anxiety by its design. Sometimes, the user feels both.

Simone LeAmon, jury chair and The Hugh Williamson Curator of Contemporary Design and Architecture, National Gallery of Victoria, praised the entry with its “innovative and thought-provoking design” that keenly conveys “the potential of postconsumer waste”.

AFDA winner, Ashley Eriksmoen
Australian Furniture Design Award winner, Ashley Eriksmoen, photography by Thorson Photography.

“An exquisite construction, the furniture design belies a sombre yet critical message alerting us to the relationships between consumer waste, natural resources, deforestation and habitat destruction. The work implores us to consider strategies for creating sustainable new furniture designs from the wealth of resources that we already have at our disposal,” says LeAmon.

The award comes with a $20,000 cash prize and a two-week residency program at JamFactory. Additionally, Eriksmoen will be mentored by Stylecraft, working with them to produce a new furniture design.

The exhibition of ‘The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent’ and the other four finalists’ works are on display until Friday, March 25th in the Stylecraft showroom.

Melbourne Design Week
designweek.melbourne

For more stories and a chance to be a part of Melbourne Design Week, visit our must-see list here!


About the Author

Caelan Kaluder

Caelan Kaluder is the editorial assistant of both Habitus and Indesign. As a recent graduate of ANU, he fell headfirst into the world of the design curious. He has directed various plays and held a residency in Canberra Youth Theatre. He has also worked as a freelance writer and has a keen eye for finding the latest in the world of architecture and design - with a soft spot for all things creative in the workplace and at home.

Tags

AFDAAshley EriksmoenAustraliaAustralian Furniture Design Awardfurniture designhabitusindesignjam factoryMelbourne Design WeekMount Lawley


Related Articles
Issue 64 - The 'Future' Issue

Issue 64

The 'Future' Issue

Habitus #64 Welcome to the HABITUS ‘Future’ and ‘Habitus House of the Year’ Issue. We are thrilled to have interior designer of excellence, Brahman Perera, as Guest Editor and to celebrate his Sri Lankan heritage through an interview with Palinda Kannangara and his extraordinary Ek Onkar project – divine! Thinking about the future, we look at the technology shaping our approach to sustainability and the ways traditional materials are enjoying a new-found place in the spotlight. Profiles on Yvonne Todd, Amy Lawrance, and Kallie Blauhorn are rounded out with projects from Studio ZAWA, SJB, Spirit Level, STUDIOLIVE, Park + Associates and a Lake House made in just 40 days by the wonderful Wutopia Lab, plus the short list for the Habitus House of the Year!

Order Issue