Page 28 - SHARP November 2021
P. 28

  Hard Knock Life
Made in rural Newfoundland, Fogo Island Workshops’ second furniture collection is designed to withstand daily life and preserve centuries’ worth of local craft tradition
BY WILL KITCHENS
SEVEN YEARS AFTER LAUNCHING ITS FIRST FURNITURE
collection, Fogo Island Workshops (the furniture and craft arm of Shorefast, the social enterprise behind the Fogo Island Inn) is back with a second. Created by pairing international designers with local craftspeople, the collection of benches, tables, and chairs (curated by Finnish design consultant Anniina Koivu) blends international- tastes with the traditional craft of Newfoundland’s remote outport communities — places that have been building boats and houses to withstand life on and beside the Atlantic Ocean for 400 years.
Fogo Island Workshops was first set up to furnish the luxu- rious Fogo Island Inn, and the ethos behind its second collection remains much the same as its first: support local makers and keep traditional craft alive. This collection, however, is more tailored to everyday living. For instance, Swiss designer Anthony Guex’s yellow birch bench, stool, and chair — their horizontal slats refer- ence the wooden stages that fishing boats are moored upon — are so simple and unadorned that they could mesh with nearly any interior. Japanese designer Wataru Kumano’s Pins Chair, on the other hand, is designed with durability top of mind.
Due to their isolation, Fogo Islanders are well versed in making things that last. So, if you’re tired of furniture that crumbles as soon as you get it home, rest assured that if Fogo Island Workshops’ furniture can handle the salt spray of life alongside the ocean, it can handle the spills and splashes of your kitchen or dining room.
DESIGN
    28 GUIDE • NOVEMBER 2021
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