R E S P O N S I B L E    D E S I G N 

  Text: Hina Nitesh

 

A visit to the India Design Week last Saturday has inspired me

 to write this post. It was a small 

but well managed exhibition proving that it is quality and not quantity that spells success. 

A number of products caught my eye and I am going to elaborate about one of them today (the rest for a later time maybe).

The brain child of Spriha Chokhani, a graduate from the Srishti School of Design, Bangalore is Pulp Factory.  As the name suggests the designer has explored newspaper as a raw material and experimented with techniques to make it useful. This is done by making it into pulp like paper mache or forming paper yarn out of it. Whatever be the process, the end product is eco-friendly and custom made. The craftsmen too get involved in the production process in which each product is hand crafted.

Paper mache is turned into usable pieces of furniture like stools, shelves etc. These products are lightweight and with their soft edges, safe for children to use. The only limitation is that these products will not be able to withstand water hence ideal for interior spaces.  

Seen from another perspective, this really is what design schools teach – giving back to the community and creating a better future. In a small town in Assam, Spriha’s Pulp Factory is doing just this – creating sustainable futures.

You can get to know more about her and her products here.

All images are courtesy Pulp Factory