Brave New World Sketches
About the Digital Exhibition: A Brave New World
After getting feedback about our first release and interviewing craft makers about their reactions, we asked the artisans to be part of this new edition by imagining what they would like to contribute to a world without mass production: a sketch for an object they would like to create, a plan for better use and reuse of materials, ideas on how work could be organized, personal notes and reactions to the theme.
*Brave New World Sketches*, our third project, is a sequel to *Postcards from a BNW*, our speculative utopia about how the world would look if our present were built on artisanal foundations rather than being the full, and now unsustainable, expression of industrial civilization.
We are very grateful to all the artisans who chose to engage and imagine with us. Their perspective, as individuals who work with material and confront the themes we have explored on a daily basis, offers an invaluable viewpoint that lends both concreteness and hope to our utopia.
Speculative sketches by Michela Bortolozzi – Relight Venice, Jin Choi, Rob Curran, Karl Hallberg, Jokum Lind Jensen, Jocelin Veronese – 333 Studio, Nynne Rosenkrantz Christiansen, Nicola Pavan, Pol Polloniato, Elena Rausse & Bruno Testa – Te.Ra., Anna Maria Sand Jensen, Alberto Scodro, Valentina Stocco – VS Ceramics.
ANNA MARIA SAND JENSEN
THE ETERNAL VESSEL
This work is inspired by the indigenous craftsmanship of Guatemala, where knowledge is passed through generations and deeply rooted in sustainability. The use of natural dyes, hand-woven textiles, and locally sourced clay offers an alternative to industrial production—a model where objects carry meaning, respect for the earth, and community value. This piece envisions a world where these traditions are not just preserved but form the foundation of a new societal structure.
Anna Maria Sand Jensen is a designer specializing in craft and material research, exploring the intersection of tradition, sustainability, and aesthetics. During her travels in Guatemala, she immersed herself in indigenous artisanal traditions, studying their techniques and philosophy. Through artistic interventions, she challenges industrial norms and envisions a future shaped by community-driven craft, where objects hold deeper meaning and production is rooted in sustainability and shared knowledge.
Ecosystem: Bornholm, Denmark
NICOLA PAVAN
THE HIVE
In a society where craftsmanship is a common language, The Hive will be the ideal place for self-expression.
An open space for everyone, where people can nurture the manual skills and craftsmanship they have learned during their school years, turning them into a passion or a professional path. Craftsmanship is, in fact, part of the school curriculum from an early age, and expert artisans will guide students in mastering the fundamentals of working with various materials, preparing those who wish to continue their journey at a university of craftsmanship.
The Hive will be a hub of ideas and inspiration, a place for sharing and creativity, where craftsmanship becomes experience, growth, and enjoyment.
From carpentry to lutherie, and later to artistic craftsmanship, I have made woodworking my creative expression. I constantly seek new stimuli and find inspiration in the environment around me. Now I live in Venice, where I recover the wood the city offers and transform it into lamps decorated with motifs inspired by its architecture.
Ecosystem: Venezia, Italy
ROB CURRAN
TECHNIQUE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE
Information on technique and safety are disseminated by individual committees as a surplus to academic studies. A means to uphold the value of hand skills in this brave new world.
Rob Curran is based in Dalsland, Sweden. He works primarily in wood as a designer, artist and craftsperson. His working technique is steam bending and he seeks to understand growth in the natural world through the sculptural forms he makes.
Ecosystem: Dals Långed, Sweden
TE.RA.
HOMO FICTORES
We imagine the future of the craftsman as an “ethnographer, experimenter, alchemist,” capable of uniting tradition and innovation to preserve the soul of objects. Their vision incorporates slowness, affection, and imperfection as signs of humanity. The backpack becomes their symbol: a container of knowledge, ancient tools and new technologies, ready to share experiences and inspire the future.
Te.Ra is a research studio and ceramic laboratory founded by Elena and Bruno, two artisans and designers with complementary approaches. Elena explores the connection between forms and meaning, revealing hidden relationships in everyday life. Bruno combines creativity and technique to enhance details and sustainability.
Ecosystem: Bassano del Grappa, Italy
JIN CHOI
CRAFT INQUIRY
I imagine a wood workshop where the latest technology supports hands-on experimentation. It’s a space for testing ideas, pushing boundaries, and refining craft through practice. Furniture making here is not just about form and function, but about using resources wisely. The process itself is thoughtful, grounded in both tradition and innovation, its positive effect on wellness is not just intuitive. It’s something we can see, feel, and measure.
Jin is a Korean-Canadian furniture maker based on the island of Bornholm in Denmark. He was educated in furniture craftsmanship at Sheridan College of Art in Ontario, Canada. Inspired by the rich legacy of Danish furniture design, he moved to Denmark to pursue his craft and now runs a handmade cabinetry and furniture business. He values the balance between function and aesthetics, believing that this harmony brings us a step closer to sustainability. From 2025 to 2027, he will study furniture design at the Royal Danish Academy to further deepen his practice.
Ecosystem: Bornholm, Denmark
ALBERTO SCODRO
RIZOSPHERE
I explore art as an organic process, guided by nature’s slow and constant rhythms. Like a rhizome, my work forms an interconnected network where materials, time, and space flow together. Creation becomes a living system, embracing transformation, balance, and collective evolution.
Alberto Scodro (1984, Marostica) lives and works in Nove. He graduated in Visual and Performing Arts at IUAV University of Venice and attended various artist residencies.
His work has been exhibited internationally and is part of public collections such as Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, MAG, Riva del Garda, Musei Civici di Nove e Bassano, Gallerie Obalne, Slo.
Ecosystem: Bassano del Grappa, Italy
NYNNE ROSENKRANTZ CHRISTIANSEN
THE LIBRARY OF MINDS
A tool for direct brain-to-screen communication. Instantly share detailed images, ideas, and visions, eliminating misunderstandings and language barriers. Useful in art, education, science, and even dream recording.
Nynne is a ceramist educated at the Royal Danish Academy of Design. She has travelled the world and spent years in NYC as a painter, model, and actress. Her artistic foundation was shaped in Copenhagen, took flight in NYC and has found a home on the island of Bornholm.
Ecosystem: Bornholm, Denmark
KARL HALLBERG
CRAFT CO-LAB
The craft co-lab is about bringing people together through craft. In a world with no mass production I imagine a need for repairing and DIY. We could have tools that are operated by two or more people to make heavy tasks easier and at the same time demand collaboration. In addition to the task being completed in an efficient way people with less experience can contribute and be included, building community around the making.
Karl Hallberg, artist and crafter in Fengersfors, Sweden. Materials and making are central to my practice, from sculpture to performative events and social practice.
This drill concept was developed in collaboration with Rina Charlott Lindgren, artist in Lofoten, Norway.
Ecosystem: Dals Långed, Sweden
333.STUDIO
TELUS
Telus is born from the exploration of the potential of ceramics:
a clay object/prototype conceived as a water device, capable of capturing moisture from the atmosphere, extracting it from the ground, and purifying it. It stores and releases water when needed, both for personal use and as support for synergistic gardens and crops in arid environments, also promoting communal and shared use. Made of clay, Telus can take the form of a vase or a sculpture, with a modular design that adapts to different settings and uses. Its size varies: it can be small or become quite large, depending on the context in which it is placed. Its imagery is inspired by the Moon and its influence on water and the Earth—on tides, underground water cycles, and even on living beings. A deep connection that traverses science, mythology, and symbolism.
333.studio was born out of a need for expression, a place where ceramics become a medium for transforming ideas and emotions into forms. I work with clay in an instinctive and experimental way, allowing each creation to be a discovery, a process of research and transformation. Each piece emerges from gesture and material, from a project or an inspiration, without predefined schemes.
Ecosystem: Venezia, Italy
VALENTINA STOCCO
REGENERATE CERAMICS
Innovating Sustainability in Ceramics.
Regenerate Ceramics is a pioneering initiative that promotes circular economy principles in the ceramic industry. By repurposing waste from manufacturers and construction sites, it transforms discarded materials into valuable resources for new ceramic production. Committed to reducing environmental impact, Regenerate Ceramics replaces virgin raw materials with industrial byproducts, minimizing waste and preserving natural resources. Through innovation and sustainability, the project fosters a more efficient, eco-friendly production system while strengthening connections between industries to support a truly circular economy.
Valentina draws inspiration from nature, architecture, and the materials of the Venetian lagoon, reinterpreting them in her everyday ceramics. Her creative research is deeply connected to the territory, reflecting a conscious commitment to preserving this fragile ecosystem. She carefully selects her materials, incorporating natural elements such as wild clay to create pieces that embody a sense of place and sustainability. Through VS Ceramics, she oversees every aspect of production, blending design, craftsmanship, and ecological awareness in a harmonious dialogue between humans and nature.
Ecosystem: Venezia, Italy
POL POLLONIATO
FORMAMIA
The object in question is the result of a self-production process in ceramics, using the ancient coil-building technique. Each individual learns the technique through participation in shared settings. Preliminary studies of the form and specific project planning are deliberately excluded. The object becomes the tangible emotional imprint of its creator. The same piece can take on multiple functions, chosen by its creator according to the different needs that may arise. The main purpose of this process is the psycho-physical well-being a person acquires through the self-production of a crafted object.
POL Polloniato (Bassano del Grappa, 1979) is an international artist specializing in contemporary ceramics, collaborating with museums, institutions, and art galleries. His artistic research has explored the use of various materials, selected and approached depending on the project and its objectives. Since 2017, he has also been engaged in education, working with schools across Italy. After living in Paris and Brussels between 2009 and 2013, he currently lives in Italy and works in Nove.
Ecosystem: Bassano del Grappa, Italy
JOKUM LIND JENSEN
RE-RENAISSANCE
Had the industrial “revolution” not led to the triumph of the modernist movement, which obliterated all other aesthetic idioms, then maybe we collectively would have continued to interpret the interpretations of the classical area?
Jokum Lind Jensen, Sweden, Artist blacksmith, Teacher, Researcher.
I hold an MAA Degree and have close to 30 years’ experience as a self-employed artist blacksmith. I have worked within several fields of the craft but am now focusing on university teaching and craft based artistic research.
Ecosystem: Dals Långed, Sweden
MICHELA BORTOLOZZI
I’M A TRAVELER, THEREFORE I RESPECT
Every journey is an encounter, and from each encounter something new is born. A journey becomes memory only if experienced as an immersive adventure. Otherwise, the memory will be erased, because if you haven’t truly lived a place, did you ever really leave?
Michela Bortolozzi, a Venetian artisan and designer, founded the project Relight Venice in which she creates sustainable objects using local and recycled raw materials. Her workshop is a place of exchange and creative collaborations with residents and travelers. Her creations are souvenir objects, vehicles for spreading messages of traditions to keep alive, awareness, and sustainable tourism.
Ecosystem: Venezia, Italy
Brave New World Talks
The following video “Brave New World – Sketches ” is a collection of self-tapes made by the craftmakers who took part in the project, in which they give a brief introduction to their work.
Exhibitions across Europe
This gallery demonstrates A Brave New World exhibitions in Gothenburg and Venice.
Imagined, created and proposed by Raffaella Rivi & Sergio Marchesini D20ArtLab
D20 ART LAB is an artistic collective and research laboratory based in Padua that explores the intersections of technology, art, and design, developing new languages to narrate organizations, ecosystems, and communities. We investigate the relationships between humans and machines, turning artistic practice into a critical tool for observing, questioning, and reimagining the world. Our research fosters unexpected dialogues between body, mind, and technology, opening new sensory and conceptual horizons. Within this framework, Arts-Based Research (ABR) is our primary approach: a method that embraces the sensory, affective, and material dimensions of experience, expanding the understanding of social phenomena beyond disciplinary boundaries. ABR invites us to immerse ourselves in processes and contexts, alternating artistic and conventional methods while valuing listening, empathy, and the regeneration of bonds between culture, community, technology, and nature. We believe that only participatory approaches make it possible to imagine shared, inclusive, and sustainable futures.