Johanna Lundberg’s Handmade Ceramic Vases Arrive in Store

Whilst working as a talented art director and designer here in Stockholm, friend of the brand Johanna Lundberg has taken up the art of hand building ceramics. We commissioned Johanna to create a series of beautiful bespoke ceramic vases for our stores. We caught up with Johanna at home and her studio as she worked on the new pieces for us. You can now view the vases in our Stockholm, Berlin and Paris locations.

How did you become interested in working with ceramics?

Back in 2015, while living in London, a friend and I took a ceramics course at Turning Earth Ceramics. Each week, we tried out different techniques, and it was such a great way to fully focus on something hands-on. Spending so much time on my laptop, I really appreciated having that offline time.

Your work focuses on handbuilding. What drew you to that particular form of technique?

I thought wheel throwing was too wet and messy, while handbuilding felt much cleaner and more creative. Throwing always makes things round, but with handbuilding, you can make whatever you want. I was also really into the idea of making big vessels at the start, and coiling was the way to do it.

Handbuilding has a loose unexpected quality, which feels at odds with your regular design work. Was it a struggle to separate the 2 disciplines?

Not at all. My graphic design work is conceptual, controlled, and rehearsed, while my ceramics are intuitive—the forms are spontaneous and secondary to the act of making. With clay, I’m usually happy with what I create, whereas in graphic design, I tend to be much more critical.

Have you found ways of working with clay translating into your design work?

I haven’t explored that yet. But now that you mention it, you’re giving me ideas.

What can we expect to see from you in the future?

Lately, I’ve been focusing on smaller, more light-hearted pieces, which started when I made little dinosaurs for my son. Surprisingly, I’ve really enjoyed working on more figurative pieces, so I expect to make more of those. I’ve also promised myself to improve my centering skills so I can create more tableware.