Lisa Ertel and Jannis Zell are both designers living and working in Germany. They investigate relationships between matter and time, nature and culture. Through recurring walks in urban and rural landscapes, they collect traces, biofacts and found materials that carry the character of a place. Their work materializes hidden histories, habits and modes of representation embedded in familiar things.
What was the inspiration for your Steinbeisser pieces?
The pieces grew out of a way of following traces, collecting what was already there and paying attention to the character of a place. We started working with Christmas trees and beaver wood. We were interested in learning from our surroundings. Almost like traveling craftspeople who respond to the materials, habits and traces of a place, we looked for existing function within the growth of a tree.
Describe your work in 3 words!
Grown. Gnawed. Carved.
What kind of materials do you use and where do you get them from?
We used former Christmas trees discarded on the streets as well as gnawed beaver wood chips collected at a riverbank in Berlin.
Which conscious lifestyle choices are you making and are you considering any new ones?
Trying to include more naps and walks within the work day.
What have you rebelled against in the past and what are you rebelling against now?
Patriarchy.