Crafting new stories with The Vernacular Modern

For Saha, the journey was more nostalgic. “I don’t see the things that I grew up with. Being from a smaller town, it made sense to return to my roots and understand and interact with artisans.” Their way of doing so was taking backpacking trips through clusters and connecting with craftspeople. Both Dutta and Saha are deeply committed to mindful product development. Their approach hinges on a comprehensive understanding of artisanal techniques and exploring ways to appropriate them in a modern context.

We spoke to the founders about their practice, experiments, and the artisans who are at the heart of their practice. Edited excerpts from an interview:

Beautiful Homes (BH): How would you define the design philosophy of The Vernacular Modern?

Deeptashree Saha (DS): Our practice is about bringing back a lot of the simpler things we used to have as part of our everyday life, from materials and textures used to make products like mats, gaddas and furniture, or making pots out of clay and papier mâché. We work with everyday crafts in a specific genre. We also look closely at materiality, the way a certain material behaves in certain circumstances, and explore that further.

BH: How would you articulate the process of craft exploration that you follow at the studio?

DS: That begins with a lot of travel, taking backpacking trips to document clusters. We sit with the artisans and understand and observe their process. There is a lot of intuitive exploration on the ground. It can be as simple as observing how a certain material behaves in sunlight perhaps or exploring different species of wood while doing a wood inlay rather than just talking about the colours. Only then do we move on to sketches and more nuanced details. Sometimes, we also explore whether we can marry the techniques with the philosophies of a very different stream to arrive at a product line or a new thought process. Along the way, it evolves itself into a product. The process spans about a year to even two to three years.

DS: The open space also helps to know which materials need a certain amount of sunlight, air, natural elements, etc. Apart from our core team, we work with 25 to 20 remote craft sectors across villages as well. For certain kinds of crafts, it makes sense to explore and study them in their specific geographic areas. These are mainly in the southern and eastern belts of India as of now.

BH: What about your explorations and research in wood, the first material the studio worked extensively with?

AD: We love working with wood inlay and learning about vernacular craft techniques associated with it. On one of our documenting trips through Mysore, we discovered Mr K Mohan’s workshop, a chance discovery late one afternoon. That meeting almost four years ago was pivotal; Mr Mohan was unwell and his craft was on the cusp of changing over to the next generation. We spent time with him documenting his process and approach in minute detail.

After documenting everything, which took us a while, we set out to understand the grammar itself. How does an artist interpret a drawing and split it up into different woods? That was a very enriching process, and we used the knowledge in first making smaller objects, coasters. Then it moved to much larger projects. We sadly lost him early last year. His sons have, however, picked up the craft and continue to work on the same principles.

BH: What according to you is necessary to create a deeper, greater awareness of India’s vast cultural heritage?

DS: We should be more conscious about what we are getting into our space. Invest in a piece not only economically but also at an emotional level. If you get to know the story behind the pieces, they become more meaningful. That is when you really know the pieces and the craft behind them rather than just setting up the house on day one.

AD: Buy fewer things because then you take that time to choose the right piece. When you do that, you also don’t part with it easily. The idea is to make those very selective conscious decisions that allow you to connect with a piece.

All images by Saurabh Suryan