Plywood – especially Finnish birch – is the preferred choice for the two young furniture designers who have just won the Jerwood Applied Arts Prize 2004: Furniture.
Jay Osgerby and Edward Barber, who work as BarberOsgerby out of Cannon Street Road, London, were presented with their £15,000 prize at the Crafts Council Gallery on September 13.
According to The Guardian, the pair have been credited with leading the growing interest of young designers in plywood which, the newspaper said, was once despised as a material seen fit only for DIY magazine racks.
Edward Barber explained to TTJ that while he and his partner do work in solid wood, they find plywood an interesting material to experiment with.
“We can get forms that look light weight but are in fact very strong”, he said.
“We normally work with Finnish birch plywood as it is the strongest type and isn’t too grainy. Plywood is definitely one of our favourite materials. It lasts amazingly well and gives you the ability to put different veneers on it, or colour it. It is a fantastic material.”
