My first memory of wood is associated with a bedroom set my parents bought me when I was five or six years old. I remember it clearly. It was simple with straight lines and big round knobs that made opening drawers easy for a little girl. Probably built out of pine, it was delivered to our apartment untreated, light, almost white in colour, scattered with tinges of yellow.
I can still see my mother taking her time, painstakingly sanding down each piece of furniture and then lacquering the dresser, the bed, night-table, desk and chair. I was amazed at how bright and shiny they turned and loved how the pieces seemed to almost glow.
I remember running my little hands along the furniture, feeling the speckles of leftover sand here and there. I cherished each and every one of those pieces. They were beautiful individually and as a whole. Each piece found its home in the small space that was my bedroom. They fit perfectly within my four walls, completed my room and made it warm and cozy. I felt like a big girl. I had a room of my own. I was happy.
Thinking back to that time in my early childhood makes me smile. It’s been many years since I’ve had the memory. Now it has returned. Ignited by this new journey I’ve embarked upon, and as I immerse myself in the world of Artemano, where wood plays a central role.
I’m starting to recognize just how much I love and appreciate this natural element, which up until recently I took for granted because even though I’ve known just how beautiful wood is, I’ve never acknowledged its power; its potential to bring me back in time and make me feel happy. Now, I’m starting to learn.
I’m slowly understanding that my attraction to old homes- where old wood floors, old wooden-framed windows and old solid wood doors are predominant- isn’t just based on beauty. I’m pulled in by something deeper. Wood, especially, the old type that’s been salvaged strikes a chord with me because it’s marked with history. It’s been touched, walked upon, lived within and used by many. It knows of the lives of people, of their stories and of their ups and downs. It’s witnessed newborns being brought home from the hospital, children blowing out their birthday candles, parents enjoying dinner parties filled with endless chatter, debates and laughter, the opening of presents during holidays and the clicking of glasses when celebrating an engagement or a graduation.
Wood is a silent, yet beautiful witness not just for me, but also for the Artemano world, where furniture that is built out of reclaimed wood – old railway tracks form India and old boats from Indonesia, is part of our story. A story that we share and that I’m truly excited to be a part of as it unfolds and develops.