Chapman & Bailey’s Sow’s Ear Challenge showcases sustainable design in a new light

 

Here’s your brief: Create a beautiful and practical piece of furniture using off-cuts of short hoop-pine. This was the challenge put forward by frame makers Chapman and Bailey as part of this year’s “Sow’s Ear Challenge”.  The objective of the competition was to provide an sustainable design solution for the mountain of timber off-cuts produced by Chapman and Bailey when making their stretcher frames for paintings.

This year, Hayley-Anne Brown won the top prize for her “Hooped Light” creation, which when lit up, illuminates the room in decorative hooped shadows.  Drawing on the spikey fruit produced by the Hoop Pine tree for inspiration, Hayley-Anne’s creation is both elaborate and simple.  Over one thousand small timber off-cuts with small drill holes have been painstaking threaded onto individual hoops, to form impressive balloon shaped light shades, with a warm splash of red throughout its centre.

The winning entry was judged by Mark Chapman and (Inside) Magazine, and exhibited at the Design:Made:Trade Show in Melbourne, as part of the State of Design Festival last weekend – We LOVED it!