Wool Reimagined: The Work of João Bruno Videira
Wool was always part of the landscape of João Bruno Videira’s childhood. His mother’s passion for traditional Arraiolos rugs filled their home in Tomar, Portugal, with colour and texture, laying down the first threads of influence. He remembers the skeins of three-ply wool, their shades shifting with the light, and the steady rhythm of her hands at work. Yet it was only years later, in adulthood, that wool revealed itself as his own medium. While working as a television journalist in 2006, Videira was asked by a friend to repair a broken chair. Reaching instinctively for the material he knew so well, he wove a new seat with his mother’s wool. What began as a small gesture of improvisation became the foundation of a new career.
Portrait of João Bruno Videira. Photo credit: Carmo Oliveira.
Since then, Videira has devoted himself to exploring wool as both a functional and expressive material. His chairs, tables and sculptural forms are entirely handmade, woven slowly and directly into their frames. He does not rely on a loom; instead, each structure becomes the loom itself, with kilometres of Arraiolos wool passing through his hands. The work is physical, repetitive, and demanding, yet it is also meditative — a constant dialogue between artist and material. “For me, the artistic process is a form of discovery, self-awareness, and revealing our existence,” he reflects. “Each piece I create is, therefore, a journey.”
"Lounge", recycled and transformed bed, from the “Puzzle” series, 2021, wood and wool. Photo credit: Carmo Oliveira.
The results are objects that balance utility with presence. Their bold geometries are softened by vibrant webs of colour, while texture invites both touch and use. Furniture becomes sculpture, sculpture becomes furniture, and the line between the two dissolves. Nothing is wasted: leftover strands of wool are reworked into small woven “stones,” ensuring that every fibre has purpose.
"Wool Stone" by João Bruno Videira. Wood and Arraiolos wool. Photo courtesy of João Bruno Videira.
Each commission begins with observation. Videira visits a space, studies its light and proportions, then sketches shapes by hand. Colour decisions are made by eye, drawn from the stacks of wool in his studio. He avoids computer renderings, preferring instead to let the process evolve at its own pace. Time, he believes, is as vital as colour or thread — each piece grows at its own rhythm, shaped by the steady cadence of the maker.
Wool stool / side table by João Bruno Videira. Wood and Arraiolos wool. Available to win in the Selvedge Issue 126, Deco prize draw.
Recognition of his practice has grown steadily. Videira has represented Portugal at the London Design Fair (2017, 2019), Dutch Design Week (2019) and Dubai Design Week (2020). In Tomar, the City Hall invited him to establish his workshop in a restored grinding factory, a fitting location where echoes of manual labour and industry linger. In this space, wool is twisted, pulled and layered into contemporary forms that bridge tradition and innovation, in a practice where patience, imagination and material converge to create furniture, sculpture and, above all, enduring works of art.
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Further information:
You can read more about João Bruno Videira in Selvedge Issue 126, Deco. Plus, one lucky reader has the chance to win a João Bruno Videira stool/side table in our Win Win Win prize draw. Click here to enter.
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Image Credits:
Lead: Woven wool panel by João Bruno Videira. Wood and Arraiolos wool. Photo courtesy of João Bruno Videira.