Colombian designer Francisco Jaramillo grew up in the Amazon and saw firsthand how indiscriminate logging practices have been destroying their ecosystem. One of the biggest issues the region faces is the use of native wood, and the Ibuju Collection offers an alternative. Yaré is a natural fiber commonly referred to as vine, and Jaramillo proposes taking advantage of the renewable material to create furniture. By rethinking the design and manufacturing of native wood pieces a difference can be made. Jaramillo’s first effort is this collection, made up of a bench, coffee table, and stool.
The Ibuju Collection begins with a group of weavers responsible for translating the original furniture designs, planning how weaving with yaré can be accomplished with the same woven geometries. The fiber is then harvested by indigenous communities in southern Colombia from where it grows on trees. Long used by locals for crafts, it can do so much more – Jaramillo has found his starting point.
Emily Reyes is a Brooklyn-based architecture writer and Article Curator at Arch2O, known for her sharp eye for experimental design and critical theory. A graduate of the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), Emily’s early work explored speculative urbanism and the boundaries between digital form and physical space. After a few years in Los Angeles working with boutique studios on concept-driven installations, she pivoted toward editorial work, drawn by the need to contextualize and critique the fast-evolving architectural discourse. At Arch2O, she curates articles that dissect emerging technologies, post-anthropocentric design, and contemporary spatial politics. Emily also lectures occasionally and contributes essays to independent design journals across North America.