Exhibition: Contemporary African Furniture Design on Display at Dubai Design Week
[Image credit: Birth Chair II – Jomo Furniture]
Dubai Design Week opens today and among the many events and works being showcased is The Birth Chair II by Ethiopian-American furniture design, Jomo Tariku. The Birth Chair II is inspired by African birthing chairs which are still being used in some parts of Sub-Saharan Africa and are also being incorporated in mainstream design as decorative pieces. The Birth Chair II is crafted from a single bent piece with clean lines for the seat and a sliding backrest with artistic carvings in the front and back. The idea behind Jomo’s design is to allow people to use a similar design of backrests as a theme or different variations as a set. The interchangeable functionality of the backrest provides the user to be creative in decorating a room of their choice. The Birth Chair II is a trendsetting idea that Jomo hopes to use as a platform for his dream of bringing contemporary African furniture to the mainstream design world.
Born in Kenya to Ethiopian parents, Jomo grew up in Ethiopia and studied industrial design in the US where for the last 20 years he has been on a mission to convince the furniture world that African designs deserve a place in the mainstream furniture market. He has been doing this through his different lines of contemporary African furniture including the Birth Chair series. Jomo uses African cultures to inspire his furniture designs. He says what he loves about African furniture designs, is the fact that they serve a dual purpose; to be used as functional and decorative household items. And highlights how in the west people are used to seeing African furniture pieces mainly as decoration but in Africa, out of necessity, they become a functional art. The beauty of “functional art” furniture is what inspires Jomo in his continual creation of new contemporary African furniture designs.
[Image credits: Birth Chair II – Jomo Furniture]
Throughout his furniture and product design career, Jomo has designed a series of renowned contemporary African furniture lines, among them: The Axum Series – living room set with Axum Chair, Coffee Table and Ottoman inspired by the architectural styles of the Axum Stelae in Axum, Ethiopia; The Berchuma – a line of stools which bring out the unique styles of contemporary African design as functional art pieces.
[Image credit: Birth Chair II – Jomo Furniture]
Jomo will also be showing other works at Dubai Design Week all inspired by his interest in traditional African furniture and design. Dubai Design Week runs from 24th-29th October.
Additional details:
For further information about Jomo Tariku and his work visit: www.jomofurniture.com
For further information about Dubai Design Week visit: www.dubaidesignweek.ae
[Image credits: All images belong to Jomo Furniture. If downloaded and used elsewhere please credit accordingly.]
