This weekend we saw these cool muti-purpose Dodora Poufs. The poufs are made of all natural materials and can be used as seats, storage, stands, or whatever you can dream up. The poufs are designed by Domingos Tótora who also creates benches, vases, and bowls made out of banana fiber, kraft paper and natural pigments.
"To create ripples and waves, an ocean of textures, shades and highlights requires the imagination of nature. To create valleys, mountains and plains from raw material the imagination of the water flows and falls into a regenerating cycle."
Intrigued by his designs we looked him up and found some inspiration…
"Domingos Tótora is passionate about his community, the preservation of its natural landscape and way of life in his hometown of Maria da Fe, Brazil. He is an artist, a creator, and a designer. His design philosophy is deeply rooted in the principles of sustainability and renewable organic cycles."
In 1998,
Domingos brought local artisans together into a cooperative known as
Gente de Fibra that manufactures his pieces. Through this cooperative, he has helped transform the struggling agrarian-based economy into one that thrives on the craftsmanship and skill of local artisans. Each item is hand crafted in a harmonious collective manner. The farmhouse and banana plantation owned by his family are where some of the pieces are manufactured today.
We love designers who not only produce sustainable made or functioning products, but also bring it full circle in their life and business philosophy. Tótora’s products were exhibited at Maison & Object in Paris and is a part of the TOUCH collective, the same company who introduced the repurposed billboard Banner Bags. Domingos Tótora's furnishings can be found through TOUCH and retailers across the world.
The poufs are pretty but I wonder how long they last. Kraft paper? It's greener (and vastly better looking) than, say, the cheap plastic chairs that people buy, but I imagine these seats are way out of that price range too, and so not a real replacement.
I applaud the effort but I wonder how green it really is if it wears out and people buy something else. Fine for the handful of people who replace their furniture frequently anyway, but then, it's that disposable attitude that got us in trouble in the first place, and furniture, of all things, really should last.
view whytephoenix's profile