Exhibition Review
US Hardwoods:
pressions in Design& ExFurniture
Architecture
The AHEC 11th Southeast Asia and Greater China Convention, organised by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) brought together over 600 architects, interior designers, furniture designers, manufacturers and US hardwood exporters.
T
hemed 'US Hardwoods: Expressions in Furniture Design and Architecture', the convention featured keynote presentations from world-renowned gurus in architecture and design on four exciting topics, namely ‘Design Excellence’, ‘US Hardwood and Interior Design’, ‘Focus on Wood Architecture’ and ‘Contemporary Furniture Design in USA and Manufacturing in Asia.’ Experts from the US, Britain, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and mainland China were invited to lead a series of panel discussions, which provided valuable insights on the use and economic benefits of US hardwoods in furniture manufacturing and design.
Surging Exports Statistics from the China National Furniture Association show that furniture exports of China surged 32.98 percent to US$13.7 billion in 2005, which was the second highest worldwide. Given the highly limited domestic supply of timber materials, US hardwoods became the premier choice of timber imports. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, eight percent of the world’s hardwood resources lie in the
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US, which is also the largest hardwood log producer in the world, with a market share of 24 percent. In addition, statistics from the Forest Service of the US Department of Agriculture reveal that the annual production of US hardwood lumbers reaches over 30 million cubic metres, and the standing hardwood reserves in the US amount to 3.2 billion cubic metres. The latest data from the Office of the US Trade Representative illustrate that exports of US hardwood products to mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan reached RMB4.1 billion (approximately US$500 million) in 2005, an 8.4 percent increase compared to the same period of 2004. For the fourth year in a row, China remains the world’s largest export market for US hardwood products.
Increasingly Popular “The regional convention this year marks the 7th time AHEC convenes in China, and is a testimony to our continued commitment to the China market,” said Ted Rossi, Chairman of AHEC. “US hardwoods have become increasingly popular in China’s interior decoration
and furniture industries for their unique looks with rich grain texture and natural character marks, and the wide varieties of colour, species and grades.” “The rapid economic growth of China has not only enhanced the consumption power of mainland Chinese consumers significantly, but also ignited the demand for high-end living. More and more consumers are eager to outfit their homes and work environment with quality interior furnishings made with US hardwoods. Specifiers in the commercial sector have also seen remarkable growth in the utilisation of US hardwood for domestic consumption across China,” said Michael Snow, Executive Director of AHEC. “AHEC will continue to enhance our network to further promote US hardwood products in both the top-tier and emerging cities of mainland China,” said John Chan, Regional Director of Southeast Asia and Greater China of the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC). “We plan to organise about 10 technical and design seminars every year to provide all kinds of technical guidance and design ingenuity for our customers and other professionals.” FDM
Exhibition Review
Making The Right Turns Professor Floris van den Broecke, Furniture Design Consultant, London, UK, shares with FDM Asia his preference for wood. By Goh Tz’en Long. What kind of wood species do you like
Do you see wood composites
to work with?
taking over the role of solid wood
American ash, grey elm especially, and
products?
for the last few years walnut, cherry and
In certain technologies, applications
oak. Those are the main species.
rather, I should think that technology is appropriate, where you can improve
Jaak Floris van den Broecke was born on 16th May 1945 in Harlingen, The Netherlands. Schooled in Zwanenburg and at the Marnix College Ede, he studied Painting and Drawing at the Academy of Fine and Applied Arts in Arnhem from 1961, where he was awarded the Tutor’s Prize on graduation in 1966. He moved to London where in 1969, he gained a Masters Degree in Furniture Design at the Royal College of Art. He combined painting with furniture design and teaching until 1977, when design became his main activity. In 1985 he was appointed Professor of Furniture Design at the Royal College of Art. Between 1986 and 1991 he was in partnership with Jane Dillon and Peter Wheeler and from 1997 until recently he was Director of Design at Ercol Furniture. He is now an independent consultant in furniture design, manufacture and education.
Tabula Walnut
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What are the advantages of working
performance, where it is required, for
with wood?
example, for weight reduction.
As a furniture material, of course it has a history. The strength-to-weight ratio
How do you turn ideas into reality?
is extremely good compared to other
Well, I think good management and
materials. Solid wood has the big advantage
communication, and not giving in to
of being easily repairable, plus it ages very
personal fancies. To have a good team
beautifully in its natural form.
and to develop a good understanding of the product. If the brief comes from
Is it difficult to fashion organic shapes
marketing, it probably goes back to
from wood?
marketing that marketing gets what
No, when it is required from a marketing
it asks for. I think we should push it a
point of view, then it can be done. Again
little bit further and try to be ahead as
my lecture has some examples of solid
marketing people mostly ask for what
timber, machined on 5-axis machines.
they have done before.
If you look at the piece of wood held in my hands here, it was turned on a lathe very slowly. If you like, it can be turned on a CNC machine. Now what you cannot do on a lathe is change its shape from one end to another. Yes, there are companies that do very interesting organic shapes with it.
Roma Dining Table (Cherry)
American Grey Elm
Exhibition Review
Half Empty, Or Half Full? John Kelly is the founder and director of the world renowned John Kelly Furniture & Accessories. He has been recognised for his distinctive approach to design and has been described as the Frank Lloyd Wright of furniture design. Goh Tz’en Long catches up with him at the AHEC convention. Does wood figure a lot in your furniture
first started out, I used cherry because it
and my hope is that we will sell one set in
designs?
was the cheapest. Now, it’s like the most
each venue. I don’t really think that it matters
Absolutely. Mostly wood. I was trained as an
expensive. So really it’s kind of ironic. I used
what you use but you should have a reason.
architect at the University of Pennsylvania.
cherry because I thought it was the best,
The reason I used the Jindai wood was
When you study architecture, you learn
I thought that it had the nicest character
because I was working with a Japanese
from ancient times. Wood was always
and personality of all the woods, walnut
master craftsman. The reason I used teak
the first material that you learn about, for
is nice but it wasn’t so plentiful and it was
was because it was for outdoor furniture
example, the Greek temples were first made
very expensive when I first started out. So
and it’s the best material I could use for
out of wood before they were made out of
I started with these American hardwoods
outdoor. The reason I used bamboo was
stone. But they always burnt out because
because I could afford to buy them, and I
because I wanted to develop the veneer line
of fires and stuff. So there is wood, and
could afford to make things out of them. But
and bamboo is a veneer material, it is not
then masonry and then stone. And these
I also made things out of teak and bamboo.
as available in a solid form. I always have
were the three and they became more and
Recently I just launched the Kisho series in
a reason but really to be quite honest with
more permanent. So I started off designing
Tokyo, Japan. It’s my newest line. It’s made
you, I still prefer to use American hardwood
in wood, because it is the most accessible,
out of Jindai wood. Jindai wood is sort of
because it is a part of me. This is the main
because there is not a lot of furniture made
sacred in Japanese culture and typically
reason I use American hardwood.
out of bricks and stone, but also because
they bury it underground for many years,
it is the first material of architecture. I
sometimes up to a hundred years. They
Do Asian influences figure prominently
think that when I was in the early stages
bury wood underground or in the water
in your furniture design?
of my career, I wanted to master wood first
to allow it to mature and express its best
Absolutely. My goal as a designer over the
before I moved on to other materials and
qualities. So I recently launched this limited
past twenty years now has been to develop
I did become an architect but I stopped
edition, very high end one of a kind range
a new cross-cultural aesthetic. And what
practising because I became better at
and I am working in conjunction with a man
I mean by that is, sometimes you look at
furniture design, so I’m still doing wood but
named Chuzo Tozawa who is one of the last
something and say that’s very Chinese,
I think I’ve kind of mastered it now.
master craftsmen in Japan. And we together
or traditional Chinese. Or sometimes you
sought to do a joint venture programme
look at something and say that’s western
So personally what kind of wood species
which basically consists of a table, six
or that’s kind of mission, or it has a type.
do you like to work with?
chairs and a server. It’s only available by
You can typify and say that is this. What I
I don’t limit myself, but because I am
the set and the cost is US$100,000 per
am trying to do is to exactly the opposite.
American, it was very natural for me to
set. We’ll make 10 sets in the world only,
What I am trying to do is to create a vessel,
begin with American hardwoods because
and then it’s finished, the whole project. So
like this (John holds a glass half filled with
they were available to me. It doesn’t really
we spent two years doing this, and it is my
water). Is it half empty or half full? It is all
matter what you use, but you should have a
highest achievement today. It’s museum
up to what you see in the glass. So what I
reason. For me, I grew up around American
quality. It will hopefully be exhibited at the
am trying to do is to create a vessel where
cherry, walnut, etc. My family in fact has
Singapore furniture fair next March as a
other people can see whatever they want
been in the timber business for over a
special exhibit. So basically this exhibit will
in it. If they want to see it as Asian, they
hundred years in West Virginia, so I actually
travel from Tokyo to New York, Minneapolis,
can see it as Asian. If they want to see
grew up knowing all about wood because
Singapore, Dubai and then to London over
it as contemporary, they can see it as
my family was somehow connected to the
the next year. We just sold one set in Japan
contemporary. If they want to see it as
business. And it’s funny because when I
last week, the first one to a Buddhist monk,
Shoji screen, they can see that.
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