Nature Squared take unusual materials and transform them into intriguing elements of interior design. They choose to celebrate nature through the inclusion of items such as eggshell, seeds, and bark, producing unique items that are predominantly sold in the luxury market, decorating superyachts.
Last year a collaboration with British designer Bethan Gray led to the production of Exploring Eden, a collection of furniture such as armchairs and tables, and smaller accessories such as paper weights and bookends, created with discarded shell waste from the seafood industry.
To ensure a minimised amount of environmental damage, Nature Squared purchases the shells from fisherman who aim to source responsibly on the island of Negros in the Philippines. A variety of shells and by-products are used to create these fascinating pieces of furniture, such as the beautiful classic fan shaped scallop shells which range in colour from yellow, to pink, to purple.
Those of a pale pink tone were selected by Gray for the Scallop Shell Desk and they were trimmed and inlaid by hand to maximise the presentation of their natural beauty. Thin, ethereal capiz shells were also utilised, producing a shelving unit and side table that constrast black and white.
A similarly elegant material, abalone shells, were also used in the project to produce magical-looking items such as a magnifying glass and a letter opener. Pearl shells from river pearl cultivation feature in the incredible and gorgeously glistening Pearl Shell Fluted Side Table which demonstrates the artisans skill. Pen shells were used to create the dark and mysterious looking
A new post by Hanna Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, June 2020.