The Unhurried Chair: Ames and the Art of Slow Making

Sebastian Herkner watched domino tiles clatter on cobblestones while pelicans wheeled overhead. In Gaira, a drowsy fishing village on Colombia's Caribbean coast, afternoon heat had driven residents to their doorsteps, where they sprawled in wicker chairs, gossiping and fanning themselves. The German designer was struck by this unguarded intimacy with outdoor living.

"The Colombian Caribbean is contagious," Herkner admits. From this cultural immersion emerged the Gaira lounge chair, his latest collaboration with Ames - a company that has spent nearly two decades perfecting the art of translating Colombia's artisanal heritage into contemporary design.

Artisan weaving colourful patterns into the Ames 'Andinas' room divider. Image: Ames.

Founded in 2006 by Ana María Calderón Kayser and her German husband Karl-Heinz, Ames operates on a simple but radical premise: that Colombia's master craftspeople possess knowledge worth preserving, and that international designers can learn from techniques predating Columbus. Ana María describes herself as "a mediator between worlds," connecting European aesthetics with Colombian materials and methods most furniture makers have never heard of...

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Image Credits:

Lead Image: Ames artisan creating colourful patterns using a weaving technique called 'momposino'. Image courtesy of Ames.

All other images as credited in photo captions.