Nalgonas Chairs
Caliche Floor Lamp
Tropical Cabinet at Casa Perfect
DESIGNER OF THE DAY

Designer of the Day: Chris Wolston

After studying non-Western creative techniques in Ghana, Chris Wolston was awarded a Fulbright grant to fine-tune his craft in Colombia—a move that strongly influenced his artistic trajectory. The fresh-faced furniture designer, who splits time between studios in New York City and Medellin, now blends time-honored South American craftsmanship with his own brand of postmodern irreverence to mastermind highly detailed pieces that delight, confound, and always have us eagerly awaiting his next move.

After studying non-Western creative techniques in Ghana, Chris Wolston was awarded a Fulbright grant to fine-tune his craft in Colombia—a move that strongly influenced his artistic trajectory. The fresh-faced furniture designer, who splits time between studios in New York City and Medellin, now blends time-honored South American craftsmanship with his own brand of postmodern irreverence to mastermind highly detailed pieces that delight, confound, and always have us eagerly awaiting his next move.

Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.

Age: 32

Occupation: Artist.

Instagram: @chriswolston

Hometown: Providence, Rhode Island.

Studio location: Medellin, Colombia, and New York City.

Describe what you make: Sculptural furniture that I hope brings joy and humor into people’s lives.

Nalgonas Chairs
Nalgonas Chairs

The most important thing you’ve designed to date: Right now, I’m showing four Nalgona Chairs with The Future Perfect at Design Miami. The chairs are woven of 100 percent Colombian Mimbre (Wicker) harvested in the Colombian Amazon. They evolved from the body forms in my sand-cast aluminum Orgy tables. I was interested in creating a new collection of work that feels both inviting and intimate, playful and warm. 

Describe the problem your work solves: As an artist, I feel that my role isn’t to solve problems but to explore and apply materials in new ways that can inspire people to raise their own questions and excite curiosity.

Describe the project you are working on now: I’m working on integrating new material practices within traditional Colombian craft to create totally new sculptural forms. Colombia has a very diverse culture of regionally specific arts and crafts traditions. Working in Medellin has allowed me to collaborate with the local artisans using local materials. I’m really interested in branching out to other parts of the country to find inspiration from new materials and techniques.

Orgy Table
Guatavita Chair
Caliche Floor Lamp

A new or forthcoming project we should know about: After the success of the rattan collection, I’m launching a series of new sofas that are like Dalí hands walking through space. 

What you absolutely must have in your studio: My garden right outside and a pair of Crocs.

What you do when you’re not working: Gardening and collecting plants and flowers.

Sources of creative envy: Hank Murta Adams, Isamu Noguchi, and Jorge Alonso Zapata.

The distraction you want to eliminate: My inbox.

Tropical Chandelier and Nalgonas Chairs at Casa Perfect
Tropical Cabinet at Casa Perfect

Concrete or marble? Concrete.

High-rise or townhouse? Country house?

Remember or forget? Remember.

Aliens or ghosts? Aliens.

Dark or light? Light!

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