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OBJECT Is an Umbrella for Anna Bera’s Utility Objects

03.08.23 | By
OBJECT Is an Umbrella for Anna Bera’s Utility Objects

When creating the OBJECT collection, Polish artist and maker Anna Bera was searching. Searching for a place where an object suddenly appears without justification, but whose existence is indisputable. The series was on display during the 19th edition of Collect in London as part of the Collect Open exhibition, the international fair’s platform for pioneering, thought-provoking craft installations by individual artists.

At Collect Open, Bera debuted the latest addition to OBJECT: a 2.6-meter tall sculpture, hand-carved from sycamore wood with a mirror made of polished steel. Its design, like the rest of the collection’s utility objects – the form of which does not reveal the functionality – plays with form. OBJECT is full of sculptures that may perform the function of mirrors, but then again may not. You may view it as something else entirely. This curiosity of function doesn’t make the pieces any less legitimate, even if all they do is simply exist.

rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.2

rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.2

detail of rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.2, detail

man looking at a tall wood and mirror rudimentary object leaning against a wall

mirror OBJECT CD N.24

detail of wood and mirror rudimentary object leaning against a wall

mirror OBJECT CD N.24, detail

detail of wood and mirror rudimentary object leaning against a wall

mirror OBJECT CD N.24, detail

wood and mirror rudimentary object

mirror OBJECT CD N.16

wood and mirror rudimentary object with woman hanging on it

Anna Bera with mirror OBJECT CD N.16

detail of wood and mirror rudimentary object

mirror OBJECT CD N.16, detail

rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.29

rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.29

detail of rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.29, detail

wood and mirror rudimentary object

mirror OBJECT CD N.30

wood and mirror rudimentary object

mirror OBJECT CD N.30

oval-shaped rudimentary wood object

mirror OBJECT CD N.1

mirror OBJECT CD N.1, detail

collection of three rudimentary wood and mirror objects in a gallery space

collection OBJECT

To learn more about Object, visit craftscouncil.org.uk.

Photos by Emilia Oksentowicz.

Kelly Beall is Director of Branded Content at Design Milk. The Pittsburgh-based writer and designer has had a deep love of art and design for as long as she can remember, from Fashion Plates to MoMA and far beyond. When not searching out the visual arts, she's likely sharing her favorite finds with others. Kelly can also be found tracking down new music, teaching herself to play the ukulele, or on the couch with her three pets – Bebe, Rainey, and Remy. Find her @designcrush on social.