Meet Ashley Eriksmoen
Ashley Eriksmoen is a designer and artist living in Canberra, Australia. She uses discarded wood furniture in unexpected ways to create sculptures and new functional objects. The NGV holds two of her pieces in our Collection, including The Dream, or The view from here is both bleak and resplendent, chaise lounge, 2022 and Fell, 2023, which was displayed in the NGV Triennial exhibition 2023-24. In the following video, Ashley explains what inspired her to make Fell and how she works through the design process.
Watch
Meet the Maker | Ashley Eriksmoen
Discussion Questions
- In the video, Ashley mentions the “circular economy”. In a “normal” economy, we take resources like wood, metal and other materials from the earth, turn them into consumer products, and then eventually throw them away. The regular economy isn’t very sustainable, but a circular economy is! The circular economy aims to stop materials becoming waste by keeping them functioning longer, and reusing, recycling and repurposing things when they break.
- What are some examples of a circular economy that you’re familiar with?
- Think about your own consumption habits. What are some ways you could reuse the things you throw away? How could you extend the lifespan of the things you own?
- In a traditional design process, designers often start by thinking of ways they can solve a particular problem or need through design. They might also produce drawings or models to explore design ideas before making their product.
- How is Ashley’s design process different?
- How does working with discarded furniture change the way she designs objects?
- Ashley also mentions a very popular kind of chair – Thonet chairs. Some people think Thonet chairs are some of the most successful products from the 19th century. The Thonet Chair No 14 was even nicknamed the “Consumer Chair” because so many consumers bought it!
- Ashley used parts of a Thonet chair in Fell because there are so many of them. Look around you- can you see any objects that there are a lot of?
- What could you do to make them into something else?