INDO-: Indian Influence

New Delhi-born Urvi Sharma and Manan Narang, founders of furniture and object studio INDO-, have discovered that pairing traditional craft processes with contemporary influences makes for award-winning design. The pair met while pursuing degrees in furniture design at the Rhode Island School of Design, and today produce work that is both innovative and acknowledges the places and people who inspire it.

Officially launched in 2017, INDO- takes cues from the partners’ Indian heritage in both materials and style. Having grown up in a culture where most furniture and objects are handmade, the duo is keenly award of the importance of bespoke, handmade aesthetics and not sacrificing quality for the convenience of mass production.

“There is something incredibly rewarding about doing the work, and the result being something you can hold or interact with,” Sharma says.

INDO-‘s work includes hand-dyed and woven fabrics, ceramics dip glazing, stitching cane and bamboo to form objects and furniture, and woodworking—all following sustainable practices and techniques meant to last generations.

“The way we address sustainability within our work is looking back at the old ways of making,” says Narang. “Looking at well-crafted pieces that people want to buy and hold onto for a really long time.”

The Ikat series is inspired by the highly skillful, labor intensive process of dyeing and weaving Ikat fabrics.

“Practiced in a number of regions across India as well as other countries such as Indonesia and Japan, Ikat fabrics are created by first resist dyeing the individual warp or weft (or in the case of double ikat, both) with a pattern, and then weaving the yarn together to create a final product,” says the studio. “This allows craftsmen to create highly complex patterns using basic weave structures like plain weave. The result is a fabric with a slightly ‘blurry’ appearance, a distortion inherent to the process, yet displaying the skill that is involved in such a tedious technique.”

In India, these fabrics are prized possessions within families, passed down from generation to generation, with their value only increasing over time.

The Pilar collection was inspired a trip to Barcelona and the abundance of color, particularly the rich, earthy glazes of Catalan ceramics and the bold use of color by Gaudi.

“The tactility of the fluted surface invites you to come closer, discovering moments of splendor and instances peculiar to each piece in the dipping process,” says the studio. “Each band of color adds a layer of depth to the product while the flutes create a constant dialogue of light and shadow amongst themselves.”

Alternatively, the Mooda Collection is derived from an Indian technique of stitching together sticks of cane or bamboo to create a low stool called Mooda. Made up of two layers of slender sticks, stitched in opposite directions, a curved form results, which appears to have no single straight line in the entire object.

“We use a range of natural materials in our work including solid wood and stone, and we incorporate all of these materials together to create a really finished and refined product,” says Sharma.

“It’s all about slow process, using natural materials, and the essence of doing things by hand,” adds Narang.