Bambusa – Curator- JD Annual Design Awards 2019-Interior Design

Designers G. Kartikeyan and R.J. Dhevapriya’s product “Bambusa” is inspired by the oldest Bamboo Weaving craft of India.

In non-classroom areas of colleges and Universities, mostly there are no proper benches or seats to accommodate the various needs of students. Nowadays with an advanced level of the education system, students need to carry their laptop which requires proper seating facility along with socket availability. The Designers have used this as an opportunity and have created a Multi-functional seater called Bambusa.

The Designers through their product have curated ‘ManicheKaam’– one of the bamboo weaving handicrafts of India. It is believed that when Vasco Da Gama entered India via Calicut in 1492; he raided the seashore places and chanced upon Goa’s abundant availability of Bamboo and other natural resources. He commenced exporting Bamboo in its raw form. Hence, the people of the Mahar community who had been weaving bamboo boats and fish storage baskets until then decided to weave furniture and export.  The craft focuses on five varieties of weaving – plaiting, coiling, plait coiling, multidirectional weaving, and twining.

Taking these aspects into account, the designers researched on the compressive and tensile strength of Bamboo and found that it’s greater than that of steel. Bamboo, being a sustainable material, is easy to maintain and can withstand any weather if treated with Boric acid and Borax. Thus the designers have combined bamboo weaving and bamboo blocks, and have designed a Multi-functional college seater. Distinctive from the market, the product has all the features in one: comfortable seating, table, and power socket