CEWO is a sustainable design project based on the reuse of ceramics and wood. The chair is made from 105 ceramic fragments from Jingdezhen and 69 pieces of reclaimed wood from the Pinwuliuxing woodworking studio, reassembled and bound together with knots. Each material is used as fully as possible in the design, and in the future, they may be reconfigured. What you see today is perhaps just a moment in the life cycle of these materials.

PINWU, invited by Japanese architecture firm Schemata Architects & Jo Nagasaka, participated in the Re;collective exhibition initiated by Korean sustainable fashion brand Re;code. The exhibition’s theme was Upcycle.

Upcycling refers to reusing materials and items that have already been used, whether they are damaged or still functional.

Unlike recycling, upcycling directly utilizes old objects and materials without requiring excessive energy to reintegrate them into the production process. Recycling, on the other hand, breaks materials down into their basic components before transforming them into new products.

"In China alone, 80 million tons of ceramic waste are generated annually. Particularly, inorganic ceramic materials, once discarded, can have a significant environmental impact. When we visited Jingdezhen, we saw a large amount of discarded ceramics, most of which were already broken pieces. I thought of cutting them into desired shapes and then stitching them back together."

"Later, I chose wood as a material because it contrasts strongly in hardness with ceramic.

One is a very natural material, and the other is synthetic. However, these two materials can be seamlessly joined together. For me, this method provides a strong contrast, yet the result is remarkably cohesive."

I want to do Upcycle in the most primitive way. For CEWO, we used 69 pieces of wood and 105 pieces of ceramic, all recycled waste materials. In fact, neither of these materials is recyclable, which is precisely the core of the creation of this work. Upcycle is very straightforward in this work.

Our previous work "Saddle" chair, which uses polyester thread to sew wood chips into a chair, is also one of the inspirations for this work. CEWO uses the same process. I always want to try to find the limits and boundaries of a process or material, and then apply that process to more materials. Therefore, it is not only the creative inspiration of this time, but also the upgrade of the process. The seemingly fragile thread can sew these two contrasting materials into any shape, without too much processing and decomposition work.

In addition, the stitching is easy to cut. In this way, perhaps one day they can be dismantled and made into new things, for another upcycle. So this is not really the end result of these materials. CEWO represents just one stage in the life cycle of these materials.

The works of PINWU have always been associated with traditional crafts and materials, which are often natural. We focus on deconstructing Chinese crafts and materials to develop contemporary design and art pieces. In this way, we are actually practicing Upcycling. The definition of Upcycling is the repurposing of items without consuming much energy in the creation of new things. Additionally, it represents just one stage or process of materials, which can be continuously upgraded and remade. This is a core concept and goal of our creation. As we face increasing environmental challenges, I believe that Upcycling will naturally become a trend in future creations. We will also continuously integrate Upcycling and Recycling thinking into our designs.