"There's still a lot we don't know about rattan" say designers finding new uses

There's more to rattan than wicker. Designers are finding new ways of shaping the vine material into furniture with a lower carbon footprint than metal or plastic alternatives.

Rattan is most commonly associated with wicker, a classic weaving technique that has been used around the world for centuries, primarily for making baskets, mats and rustic-style furniture.

Now, designers are discovering the broader potential of this fast-growing climbing plant.

Rattan fibres are stronger than most other materials used in wicker, such as willow or seagrass. But unlike bamboo, which is too rigid to bend into tight curvatures, rattan's woody stems are highly pliable.

This means it can be knotted, bent or curved into a wide range of intricate or free-flowing sculptural forms.

"There's still a lot that we don't know about rattan," said designer Alvin Tjitrowirjo, founder of Indonesian furniture brand AlvinT, who has been exploring the possibilities of the material for over 15 years.

"There are about 600 species of rattan, and only 50 are being used industrially," he explained.

"There are so many new possibilities. I see that as a challenge – it makes me excited to try and develop them."

Tjitrowirjo was among a number of designers exhibiting rattan pieces at the recent edition of Jia Curated, an annual design and craft festival in Bali.

The most innovative example came from Italian designer Pietro Franceschini, who collaborated with Indonesian manufacturer CVP on a series of one-off pieces inspired by liquorice wheels.

Franceschini's Rotella series includes a chair, a bench and various tables that all explore a similar layering technique, with curved rattan rods placed in sequence to create continuous surfaces.

"The idea was to use rattan with a different approach," the designer told Dezeen.

"If you treat rattan like liquorice, offsetting these pipes multiple times, you can create different surfaces," he said, highlighting the increased strength of the material in this arrangement.

"The cool thing about using rattan this way is that it can potentially translate into many different functions," he suggested.

Franceschini's first experiments with rattan resulted in the petal-shaped Luma series, but Rotella saw him push the material even further. He referenced the Nastro chair, created in 1964 by Italian designer Joe Colombo, as a key reference.

The Italian is one of only a handful of European designers who have experimented with alternative rattan applications in recent history.

Others include Spanish designer Jaime Hayon, who launched his Frame collection with outdoor brand Expormim in 2014, and American designer Chris Wolston, who has been pushing the limits of wicker since 2018.

Franceschini believes we're still scratching the surface of what could be possible with this material.

"I think that there's so much more to say," he said.

"We need to explore more, going beyond the idea of having a structure and separate woven panels. We can make things that are both structural and supporting the body."

Indonesia is responsible for around 80 per cent of global rattan supply, with greater manufacturing expertise than anywhere else in the world.

Many major European furniture brands are believed to outsource rattan production here, although it's impossible to verify, as the information is not disclosed publicly.

Tjitrowirjo sees this as an opportunity for Indonesian designers; by drawing on regional knowledge, they can become leading experts on a material with scope for global influence.

He first started working with rattan in 2009, when he used slender lengths to create his organically shaped Linger bench.

The designer has since worked on a range of collections, including the Tropicália Modernity pieces published on Dezeen in 2019. He produces these through his own brand, which has a showroom gallery in Jakarta.

Much of Tjitrowirjo's expertise comes from working with local artisans. He recently collaborated with an indigenous community in central Borneo, who employ a wide range of rattan techniques for farming practices.

"The Europeans made the rattan shapes that we're familiar with, but the real traditional people use it in other ways," he explained. "It's been with us for so many years, but it has been under-appreciated."

As sustainability becomes increasingly important, Tjitrowirjo believes rattan can provide an alternative to many other materials used in furniture design.

It is a fast-growing, renewable material that doesn't require dedicated land. It grows between trees, so it encourages forest preservation.

"You take care of the forest and the forest provides for free, forever," he said.

Technology looks set to play a crucial role in increasing rattan's use. Most production before now was carried out by hand, but many manufacturers are now developing machines to automate the processes.

This could pave the way for a more modular approach to rattan, counter to the more traditional handmade aesthetic.

The work of designer Felix Sidharta, founder of East Java-based studio Cassia, inadvertently hints at this future.

Fascinated by how wire mesh fences are constructed, Sidharta developed an interlocking system that turns slender lengths of rattan into triangular grids.

He used it to create the backs for his Simpul chair and has since experimented with tables and lamps.

"We're experimenting with how small details can be used to make any possible object," he told Dezeen. "It's a small branch, but it can be repeated to create visual complexity."

Like Tjitrowirjo and Franceschini, Sidharta is excited to explore more possibilities. He plans to next develop a partition screen using the Simpul system, allowing for easy shipping and assembly.

"To me, it just makes sense to use a smaller diameter rattan core for this kind of work," he added. "It offers a flexibility that no other natural material can match, or at least not easily."

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