BOX is an exhibition of new works by the British designer, crafted entirely of cardboard. By connecting art and anthropology to materiality and improvisation, these works embody new histories of craft and give value to a material often seen as secondary. This exhibition highlights Lamb’s affinity for breaking away from traditional processes and instead developing his own singular typologies that blend art, design and functionality.
Catalysed by his interest in sustainability and intrigued by the challenge of giving scrap material primary value, Lamb sought to make use of the ever-increasing piles of cardboard accumulating in his studio. Surplus materials included unbleached cardboard tubes used to store and transport his Space-Dyed tufted rugs, surplus quality corrugated cardboard gathered over time from museum loans and various workshop projects, as well as everyday delivery boxes with varied different shapes, colours and textures. Working with or against pre-cut shapes by cutting, scoring, folding, crushing and reassembling with bolts, screws, paper gum tape and a home-made wheat- based glue, Lamb assembles volumes of cardboard into forms, building up layers of the ubiquitous brown paper to create a structural integrity like that of rock or wood yet always striving to retain evidence of the making. Although achieving durability whilst preserving the personality of the material proved a challenge, Lamb has successfully elevated the works from an exercise in form-building to unique and functional design pieces.
