Natan Ponieman studied Wood-Oriented Furniture Design at HDK-Valand/Steneby, where his practice engaged with the cultural, historical, and acoustic dimensions of objects. Working primarily with wood, he approaches furniture-making as both an artistic and research-driven medium, exploring how material, form, and sound intersect.
His projects often investigate the cultural meanings embedded in design. In Hella Åland Chair, he reinterprets Carl Malmsten’s Lilla Åland using digital tools, transforming it into a heavier, more expressive piece with medieval undertones. Alongside furniture design, his work extends into instrument-making, including a traditional mountain-style banjo, a dulcimer, and a prototype for a travel guitar.
In his thesis project, Sympathetic Vibrations, Natan explores how musical qualities can be integrated into functional seating, blurring the boundaries between furniture and instrument. His work is inspired by sound, art, music, and the historical relationships between humans and objects, with a focus on how acoustic properties shape experience.
Material plays a central role in his practice. He investigates wood both as a structural and acoustic medium, drawing connections between cabinet making and instrument making traditions. Through hands-on workshop processes, he engages in a meditative practice of trial and error, allowing form and function to emerge through making.
Natan’s work reflects an interest in cultural memory and the enduring role of music in human life, considering how design can embody and extend these relationships.
