Jo Weadon, Studio Arvor
WINNER: Green Maker Initiative (joint)
See below for more information
Studio Arvor was founded by Jo Weaden on the North Cornish coast. Jo is a furniture designer-maker and is passionate about sourcing and utilising materials with local provenance and minimising the environmental footprint of her pieces.
Studio Arvor designs and hand crafts furniture and home accessories from their Cornish studio and workshop using plant-based, responsibly sourced materials with non-toxic finishes. Their items are made for longevity using craftsmanship alongside contemporary designs.
Transparency is a core principle of Studio Arvor. Every item is designed and made in their workshop in Bude and for each piece they are able to tell you which saw mill the timber was purchased from, and where the tree grew. They only use UK hardwoods and have teamed up with Juggle to create an interactive element that tells a story about each item and the material provenances.
Juggle specialises in embedding technology into products to enable interactive information sharing. Trem Christ, engineer at Juggle, has created stories for each item on display accessed by scanning the piece of furniture.
IG: @studioarvor
WEB: studioarvor.co.uk
WINNER: Green Maker Initiative Award (joint)
Awarded by Dr Emma Whittaker, Creative Industries Industrial Research Fellow, Sustainability Hub: University of Plymouth
It is heartening that so many of the designers showcased in the January 2023 MAKING IT exhibition are addressing the environmental sustainability and ethical implications of their work.
Elizabeth Crawford and Jo Weaden – Studio Arvor, have both received the Green Maker Initiative (GMI) Awards in the MAKING IT Exhibition, January 2023! The award holders exemplify innovation and creative talent, and they also demonstrate best practice in their different approaches to communicating and reducing the environmental impact of their work.
Jo Weaden – Studio Arvor creates beautiful contemporary and skilfully constructed furniture that is designed to last, using local Cornish and responsibly sourced materials, together with non-toxic finishes. Studio Arvor, in collaboration with Juggle, provide an app that gives information about the furniture’s materials, processes and carbon footprint. This transparency encourages customers to prioritise sustainability and to ask questions about the provenance of what we purchase.
