Graduation project
Regenerated
Ben van Kemenade
Using design as an act of caretaking, a newly cut tree trunk provides the humidity needed to preserve a carpenter’s treasured timber collection.
In his design practise, Ben van Kemenade looks for materials previously owned by devoted and experienced craftsmen. Carpenter Riky van Dullemen (1937), deeply rooted in her tools, materials, and workspace, is a good example. In her forty years of work, she unconsciously established a broad collection of timber. When Ben discovered that she could no longer take care of these precious woods, he knew he had to position himself as a preserver and caretaker of this supply. In the installation he built, a freshly cut Acer pseudoplatanus tree will provide humidity for Riky’s old collection to prevent it from bending, twisting, and cracking. The project reflects on caretaking, preserving the old to let the young mature, and the transition of knowledge to future generations.