the sakan collection by bril is made from a mixture of straw and soil

‘sakan bowls’ by brilimage © designboom 

using a basic mixture of chopped straw, sand and natural soil, ‘sakan’ – a material known for its use in conventional plaster work for making walls in japanese houses, a series of objects created japanese design collective bril, pays homage to the traditional manufacturing technique. without the need to be baked in order to be fixed like ceramic, the collection proposes new products that use ‘sakan’ in innovative ways. 

shaped by forging different sheets of punched steel, the mixtures of soil create various reliefs. after drying, the mixture protruding from outside from the pattern is cut off and the unique combination of soil and mesh is revealed on the outer surface.

topview of sakan bowl

the ‘sakan bowl’ utilizes a structure covered with the mixture of soil. used for placing vegetables, the bowl maintains a proper level of humidity, preserving food for an extended period of time. 

making of sakan collection

the detail of sakan bowl

the detail of sakan bowl

product views with material mixtureimage © designboom

frontview of ‘sakan light’ switched on

shaped as a tube, the ‘sakan light’ is conceived by dabbing the mixture to create a soft shaded surface, contrasted to have ceramic-like properties in the white one, the pattern of the mesh under the shade softly stands out and the surface looks like ceramic objects.

sakan light detail turned on

 ‘sakan light’ turned on during 2012 design tide in tokyoimage © designboom 

 image © designboom

‘sakan light’

sakan light detail

frontview of sakan stool

 using the same moulding technique, the ‘sakan stool’ surface looks as if it were scratched by a brass brush.

‘sakan stool’ detail

texture samples 

material mixturesimage © designboom 

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication.we have visited the tokyo design tide exhibition where the ‘sakan collection’ was on show during tokyo design week and have includedsome of our own images of the works to give you a better understanding of the materials and processes used to execute the design pieces. see more project submissions from our readers here.