max lamb sculpts stone 'boulders' series for salon 94 design

british designer max lamb has created 11 stone chairs and nine stools that tell the story of italy’s adamello mountain range. titled ‘boulders’, the series examines the geology of the region and the force of the river that continues to sculpt the tonalite granite into smooth boulders. ‘boulders is a deeply personal pilgrimage to the mountain landscape surrounding the italian village of carisolo, an exploration of the waterfalls and river ways of adamello,’ lamb explains. ‘on the five or so previous trips to visit pedretti, I had hiked some of the mountain trails on route to the quarry, and collected from the rivers a handful of the smooth rounded pebbles of the same black and white speckled granite found in the quarry.’

the exhibition opens on november 9, 2017 at new york’s salon 94 gallery

the project is max lamb’s first solo exhibition with salon 94 design, a new york gallery dedicated to modern art and design. during his upbringing, the british designer was fascinated with a neolithic stone circle close to his home in cornwall. with ‘boulders’, lamb playfully riffs on these pre-historic and ancient rings, as well as the burial mounds that still dot the english countryside. the tonalite rocks have been shaped by nature over millions of years, and now, with one clean cut, have been re-purposed as furniture.

tonalite boulder chair #3, 2017
24.4 x 23.6 x 33.9 in / 62 x 60 x 86 cm

‘the power of the fast paced river can be heard, felt and even tasted in the air due to the fine spray drifting down the valley from the thundering cascate di nardis waterfall,’ continues lamb. ‘the power of the river is also immediately visible in the way it has carved the landscape over millions of years, and perhaps only slightly quicker, shaped the riverbed and eroded the loose granite rocks as they tumble down stream until they become perfectly smooth rounded boulders.’ the exhibition opens on november 9, 2017 at salon 94.

tonalite boulder chair #3, 2017
24.4 x 23.6 x 33.9 in / 62 x 60 x 86 cm