Magdalena Bravo


MEDULAR. PRESERVING WICKER TRADITION THROUGH DESIGN AND CRAFTMANSHIP COLLABORATION.





This project was a collaboration between government, academia and traditional craftsmen. The challenge was to promote wicker amongst Santiago citizens on the annual "Expo-mimbre". Through traditional craftsmanship and new developments through design. For this, we collaborated with 8 artisans and developed a 320m2 wicker piece that combined traditional techniques with parametric design and material innovation. 



Some of our partners for this project were: Vicuña Municipality, Metro de Santiago, Artesanías de Chile Foundation, Secretaría General de la Presidencia Ministry, Universidad de Chile, Gt2P studio and Jetpack Diseño.








Digital visualization of wicker structure





Wicker structure close-up





Material Innovation



This project explored new possibilities in wicker crafting, specifically applying wood bending techniques to the entire branch. By doing these, the waste and cost of the production of the wicker fibre were reduced.





Parametric Design



Parametric design was used to design the wicker module that then was reproduced multiple times and for projecting the desired curve.




Mounting plan