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Furniture and Interior Design
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nimisha_p@nid.edu |
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Darbhasan-Explorations of the Sajai Craft in Kutch
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Guide Anuya Naik |
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Sponsonr Hunnarshala Foundation
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In my diploma project, I made an attempt to explore and identify the ‘Sajai’ craft of Kutch and carry out design interventions by designing a set of sustainable furniture to serve the market needs. At present, craftsmen are not able to develop new products as per the changing market needs; as a result most of them are shifting towards manual labour leaving their crafts behind. Developing furniture from ‘Sajai’ was challenging and an interesting task. At every stage there were different set of issues and a room for design intervention. The design brief was to explore the ‘Sajai’ craft and its strengths in terms of form and technique to develop sustainable products meant to cater the contemporary market needs.
After the initial understanding and research on ‘Sajai’ and on other crafts and their techniques through literature survey, field visit and market study- both local and global, explorations were made through several initial concepts. Following the discussions with the local craftsperson, guide and sponsor, some of the concepts were further explored in various materials. With the help of the craftsmen, mock up models and trial prototypes were made for evaluating the selected concepts. The craftsmen were willing to share their views and take suggestions and feedback while fabricating the prototypes.
The first exploration was a stool based on an inspiration from the basic form. The other prototypes developed were inspired from the various organic forms and support was provided using bamboo and cane. At the end of the project three pieces of furniture were developed and prototyped for creating a niche in the market for this craft. The project provided me an in-depth learning of the various issues faced by the craftsmen and their communities. It also inspired me to learn other crafts as well. |
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