monica förster explores bosnian woodcarving techniques with furniture for ZANAT

monica förster explores bosnian woodcarving techniques with  furniture for ZANAT
photo by almin zrno

ZANAT was born in 1927, as a furniture company focused on employing the primitive hand-carving techniques originating from the small bosnian village of konjic, just south of sarajevo on the neretva river. for four generations, the niksic family has run the business, producing hand-carved furniture and decorative objects in local hardwoods, adorned with particular motifs chiseled into their surfaces. known today as the ‘bosnian konjic style’, the technique and its resulting high-quality finish has been  largely created and developed by the niksic’s. it has received much global recognition, and in 2015 was officially named a candidate of the UNESCO world intangible cultural heritage list.

‘unna’ dining chair
photo by almin zrno

highlighting the exceptional craftsmanship of bosnia and herzegovina, ZANAT takes on a new approach appointing swedish creative monica förster as its design director. the partnership has seen the development of a contemporary collection of furniture that employs the traditional ‘bosnian konjic style’ of wood carving.

profile of the ‘unna’ dining chair
photo by almin zrno

presented during stockholm design week in an exhibition entitled ‘sarajevo sessions: scandinavian designers discover bosnian handcraft’, förster’s family of objects includes the ‘unna’ dining chair, ‘tara’ cabinet and shelving system’ and ‘bowls’, all of which have been hand made, preserving the cultural heritage of bosnia and herzegovina — supporting green growth and local job creation.

view of the stackable chairs and the hand carved details visualized on their seat backs in a scallop motif
photo by almin zrno

‘tara’ cabinet and shelving system
photo by almin zrno

standard vertical modules are combined with differently sized shelves
photo by almin zrno

detail of the scalloped motif along the vertical modules, and connection points with the shelves
photo by almin zrno

‘bowl’ table accessories
photo by stockholm auktionsverk

up close
photo by stockholm auktionsverk

‘unna’ dining chair by monica förster surrounded by the bosnian landscape
image courtesy of ZANAT

various carving techniques have been employed in the furniture collection
image courtesy of ZANAT

a craftsman chiseling away a floral surface design
image courtesy of ZANAT

image courtesy of ZANAT

a craftsman working on a scalloped pattern
image courtesy of ZANAT

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