Fernando Laposse

“We should diversify who we are designing for; not all humans are urban humans. I think design innovation should propose radically new production systems that are fair, collaborative and non-extractive.” – @fernandolaposse Kicking off Day one with Worlds in Contact – the opening talks session of Global Design Forum Istanbul. ✨ Through a rapid series of provocations, voices from architecture, design, writing and landscape practices interrogated what happens when design genuinely shares authorship with the world around it – setting the tone for this first edition. Together, @mireialuzarraga , @jamesbridle , @boonserm_premthada , @fernandolaposse and @defnekoz opened the forum with perspectives on collaboration, care and radically rethinking the systems we design within. Moderated by GDFI Forum Content Advisor, @beatricegalilee . 🇹🇷 “Tasarım yaptığımız insan çeşitliliğini yeniden düşünmeliyiz; çünkü her insan kentli değildir. Bana göre tasarım inovasyonu, adil, kolektif ve sömürüden uzak üretim biçimlerini cesurca önermeli.” — @fernandolaposse Global Design Forum Istanbul’un ilk edisyonunun açılış oturumu, “Worlds in Contact” başlığı etrafında şekillendi. Mimarlık, tasarım, yazı ve peyzaj pratiğinden gelen farklı sesler; tasarımın çevresindeki dünyayla gerçek anlamda ortak bir yaratım ilişkisi kurduğunda nelerin mümkün olabileceğini sorguladı. @mireialuzarraga , @jamesbridle , @boonserm_premthada , @fernandolaposse ve @defnekoz ; iş birliği, özen ve içinde üretim yaptığımız sistemleri kökten yeniden düşünme üzerine perspektifleriyle Forumu açtı. Oturumun moderasyonunu ise GDFI Forum İçerik Danışmanı @beatricegalilee üstlendi. ✦14-15 May ✦Global Design Forum Istanbul ✦Hagia Irene, Topkapi Palace Complex #GlobalDesignForumIstanbul #WorldsInContact #GDFI #GDF

[Research trip] Fernando Laposse – Sisal 🗓 09.02.2026 – 09.03.2026 📍 Tonahuixtla, Puebla / Mexico City – MX • During our time in the village of Tonahuixtla, @fernandolaposse guided us through the different stages of Sisal, his long-term project centred on the transformation of agave leaves into fibres later used in the studio’s furniture and sculptural pieces. Experiencing the project directly within the landscape where the agaves are cultivated allowed us to follow the entire process from harvest to finished object. While sisal has traditionally been woven or twisted into ropes and nets, Fernando developed a deliberately simple knotting technique that keeps the fibres loose, flowing, and almost animal-like in appearance. Requiring only minimal tools, the method can be learned quickly by his collaborators, yet produces textures defined by a strong visual and tactile presence. During our visit, we were able to closely observe how, through a series of straightforward gestures and without the use of complex machinery, agave leaves are scraped by hand, washed, and cut into bundles of varying lengths depending on the needs of each piece. Hidden beneath the thorny exterior of the plant, the fibres reveal an unexpected combination of softness and durability. In some cases, the fibres – which naturally have a pale tone – are also dyed using pigments, including cochineal. The final composition takes place in Fernando’s atelier in Mexico City, where the fibres are integrated into the finished design pieces. Encountering these objects after having visited the agave fields and followed the production process firsthand gave them an entirely different resonance: each fibre remained visibly tied to the territory, labour, and ecological conditions from which it emerged.

[Research trip] Fernando Laposse – Totomoxtle 🗓 09.02.2026 – 09.03.2026 📍 Tonahuixtla, Puebla / Mexico City – MX • A particularly meaningful focus of our time in Mexico was Totomoxtle, the project initiated by @fernandolaposse , which we had followed from afar for nearly a decade. Over the years, we have written articles and essays about it, presented it in our exhibition Plant Fever (2020–2024), and discussed it through talks in art & design schools. Experiencing it in situ, and for the first time tracing its full production cycle from beginning to end, marked a particularly important moment. From the maize fields surrounding Tonahuixtla, where heirloom varieties are reintegrated, to the tools developed by Fernando Laposse to enable the careful harvesting of the husk – such as a custom chair fitted with a circular blade designed specifically for stripping the husks in the field (pic. 5) – the process begins within the agricultural landscape itself. The region – which lies close to some of the earliest documented sites of maize domestication by pre-Hispanic populations – is shaped by centuries of active cultivation and stewardship by local communities. The material then moves into the village’s community workshop, where the husks are sorted, flattened, and prepared by hand before being cut into intricate marquetry pieces. This stage, deeply embedded in the local social fabric, transforms an agricultural by-product into a refined surface material while generating new forms of employment. The final phase takes place in Fernando’s atelier in Mexico City, where the marquetry is composed and applied to the furniture pieces designed by the studio. During our stay, we were able to closely follow the making of a series of cabinets and tables, witnessing how the vibrant spectrum of natural maize hues – from deep purples to warm creams – is assembled into detailed surfaces. Seeing the entire chain unfold – from cultivation to finished object – offered a comprehensive understanding of Totomoxtle not only as a material, but as a system that interweaves agriculture, craftsmanship, and design into a process rooted in time and place.

[Research trip] Fernando Laposse – Agave reforestation project 🗓 09.02.2026 – 09.03.2026 📍 Tonahuixtla, Puebla – MX • A key moment of our trip to Mexico was our visit to the rural village of Tonahuixtla, where @fernandolaposse has been carrying out long-term design-agriculture projects with the local community. There, we met Delfino Martinez Gil – a farmer and one of his main collaborators, whose role has been central to these initiatives. Parallel to the more known Totomoxtle project, their collaboration extends into broader, deeply rooted engagements with the land and its regeneration. At the heart of this is an agave-based reforestation project, initiated in 2015 by Delfino and the community through a state programme supporting arid rural areas. Since then, over 100,000 agave have been planted across 180 hectares of degraded land. More than a crop, agave function as living infrastructures: planted along contour lines, they form terraces that stabilize soil, prevent erosion, and create conditions for other species to grow, gradually restoring biodiversity. This is a project we had first heard about from Fernando some years ago, so it was particularly meaningful to finally experience it with our own eyes. When we visited in mid-February, the environment was marked by extreme water scarcity – it hadn’t rained since October 2025. While the impact of the project was visible, with more vegetation emerging thanks to the water retention capacity generated by the agave cultivation beds, it was also clear that the ecosystem remains fragile, and that there is still a long path ahead before the land can fully recover. The project is ongoing and grows through a hybrid model that connects design and agriculture: the planting of new agave is supported by the sales of Fernando’s design pieces, a natural continuation of the designer’s long-term engagement with the community of Tonahuixtla. At the same time, agave seeds are carefully collected and stored, ensuring the community maintains its own capacity for regeneration and resilience over time.

A reflection on bread as both culture and control. Drawing from the phrase “bread and circus,” the work invites a pause on today’s world, where distraction often replaces substance. Through the form of a tray and cloche inspired by Uzbek architecture, a stretched suzani textile becomes an acrobat’s net, holding both tension and meaning. At its centre, stamped into the bread itself, the message remains clear. Fernando Laposse brings his ongoing exploration of material, culture, and community into dialogue with Uzbek craft traditions, creating a piece that speaks as much to history as it does to the present. Bread tray in collaboration with Fernando Laposse Studio and Madina Kasimbayeva, crafted in wood, cotton, textile, and silk embroidery. Bread stamps in collaboration with Boburjon Atabayev, crafted in ceramic and wood. Bread stamps in collaboration with Abdulla Abdurazzokov and Boburjon Atabayev, crafted in wood and nails. #WhenApricotsBlossom #ACDF #MilanDesignWeek

Fernando Laposse, @fernandolaposse one of the Aral School lecturers, presents his contribution to the exhibition When Apricots Blossom @uzbekistanmdw through Bread Tray and Bread Stamps. Bread Tray was developed in collaboration with Fernando Laposse Studio and Madina Kasimbayeva, suzani artist, combining wood, cotton, textile, and silk embroidery. Bread Stamps were created in collaboration with Abdulla Abdurazzokov and Boburjon Atabayev. For When Apricots Blossom, twelve designers, including Fernando Laposse, engaged with the tradition of bread as both craft and ritual. Each was invited to respond through a contemporary lens, creating a unique tray for the display of bread alongside a series of limited-edition bread stamps. As part of this process, they travelled to Karakalpakstan to collaborate with local craftspeople — woodcarvers, tassel-makers, and artisans — working with materials such as silk, felt, ceramics, and reeds.

During the workshop, Fernando Laposse shared his approach to designing with the land and for the land with Aral School participants. Drawing from his material-driven practice and long-term collaboration with farming communities, he spoke about the importance of understanding local ecosystems, cultural context and regenerative potential before creating design solutions. Through discussion and exchange, participants explored how design can respond to environmental degradation, support communities and transform natural materials into meaningful tools for restoration. The session encouraged researchers to see design not only as form-making, but as a responsibility towards landscape, people and future resilience.

Betan Laura Vud @bethanlaurawood , Marsin Rusak @marcinrusak , Fernando Laposs @fernandolaposse , va Bobir Klichevning @arc_architects O‘zbekiston bo‘ylab yaqinda amalga oshirgan tadqiqot sayohatiga bag‘ishlangan “Jonli ashyolar: hunarmandchilik, madaniyat va qayta tiklanish” davra suhbatining asosiy lahzalari bilan bo‘lishamiz. Suhbat davomida ishtirokchilar o‘z kashfiyotlari va taassurotlari bilan o‘rtoqlashib, moddiy madaniyat hamda u bilan ishlashning zamonaviy amaliyotlari haqida fikr yuritdilar. Tadbir tomoshabinlar bilan jonli muloqot tarzida yakunlandi. ~~~ Sharing highlights from “Living Materials: Craft, Culture and Regeneration”, a public talk reflecting on the recent journey of Bethan Laura Wood @bethanlaurawood , Marcin Rusak @marcinrusak , Fernando Laposse @fernandolaposse and Bobir Klichev @arc_architects across Uzbekistan. The discussion examined their discoveries and impressions, offering considered perspectives on material culture and practice, and concluded with an engaging exchange with the audience. ~~~ Делимся ключевыми моментами встречи «Living Materials: Craft, Culture and Regeneration» — паблик-тока, посвященного недавнему исследовательской поездки по Узбекистану Бетан Лауры Вуд @bethanlaurawood , Марцина Русака @marcinrusak , Фернандо Лапоссе @fernandolaposse и Бобира Клычева @arc_architects . В ходе разговора участники поделились открытиями и впечатлениями и и предложили рассуждения о материальной культуре и современных практиках работы с ней. Встреча завершилась живым диалогом с аудиторией.

Jewellery stand for Hermes newly refurbished store in Mexico City made with heirloom corn leaf marquetry which naturally grows in a variety of colours. Thank you for entrusting me with such a cool commission @hermes !!

The Lufa Series by @fernandolaposse reimagines loofah, commonly associated with bathing, as a versatile, regenerative design material for living and working spaces. Loofah is a natural sponge that comes from a fast-growing fruit related to pumpkins and cucumbers. Grown vertically, loofah requires minimal space and nutrients, matures in just six months, and leaves no roots in the soil. This positions it as a highly sustainable alternative to materials like wood and cork. For the collection, Laposse flattened, molded, and sewed dried loofah into new forms, combining it with cement, wood, and terracotta. The project proposes natural sponge as a tool to rethink domestic objects and to repair broken social and environmental systems through design rooted in regeneration rather than extraction. #MaterialResearch #RegenerativeDesign #Biomaterials #SustainableDesign Images via Fernando Laposse

[Memo] Focus on: Fernando Laposse • Fuelled by changing diets and trade agreements such as NAFTA, Mexican avocado exports have surged over recent decades, turning Michoacán into the epicentre of a lucrative “green gold rush.” Forests have been cleared for plantations, devastating ecosystems vital to the monarch butterfly, whose population has declined by around 80% since the mid-2000s. For local communities, the loss is also cultural: monarchs are believed to be the souls of ancestors returning on Día de Muertos, making their disappearance a profound spiritual blow. This environmental destruction is entwined with violence by organised crime, including extortion, illegal logging, and the intimidation of communities that resist – conditions that led to the 2020 murder of Homero Gómez González, an environmental activist and manager of the El Rosario Monarch Butterfly Preserve who dedicated his life to protecting the species. These intersecting crises underpin @fernandolaposse ’s long-term project Conflict Avocados, which uses design and documentary practice to expose the human and ecological costs of avocado cultivation. Among its works is a daybed inspired by the Japanese repair technique boro, conceived as a symbolic resting place for those killed in the struggle, with textiles dyed from avocado pits and skins. The accompanying film Green Fever foregrounds the monarch butterfly and Gómez González, honouring lives and landscapes erased by ongoing extractive agriculture. • Laposse is part of our current exhibition Memo. Remembering the Futures 🗓 13.06.2025—04.01.2026 📍Fondation Martell, Cognac – FR Concept & curation d-o-t-s (Laura Drouet & Olivier Lacrouts) Scenography @olivier_vadrot (w/ @rafael_tetedoie ) Graphic design @wip.eu (w/ @emmaburel ) Featured artists & designers @felixblume / @emma.bruschi / @liselotcobelens / @collider__ x The Monkeys / @dach.zephir / @robertadicosmo / @sayawciansayaw & Cla Ruzol / @alexisfoiny / @suzannehusky / @kenyon.projects & @l_ucy_cas_h / @fernandolaposse / @cegeste / @neveinsular / @bubuogisi & @iamisigo / @yeseniatipi Co-production @fondationmartell & @cidgrandhornu • Images © 1–6. Olly Cruise 7. Pauline Assathiany

Meet Patachin my monster table light made out of hand knotted agave fibers with brass and steel details. Catch them this week @designmiami at the @friedman_benda booth!