EVE EUNSON

Heritage Crafts in Wood + Straw

Based in Shetland, Eve Eunson is a designer maker inspired by the vernacular furniture of Fair Isle.

MY WORK

I was born and raised on my family’s croft in Fair Isle, Shetland, and studied Art and Architecture in Aberdeen. In 2018, with no previous woodworking experience and little knowledge of vernacular furniture I began an ambitious research project to trace, survey and recreate the traditional chairs of my native isle.

Although completely self-driven, The Fair Isle Chairs Project became much more than a piece of personal research. Through the process, the Heritage Crafts Association became aware of the precarious nature of the future of the Fair Isle Strawback Chair and listed the technique on their Red List of Critically Endangered Crafts.

I hope now, through continuing my own craft practice in wood and straw, to promote the Fair Isle Strawback Chair knotting technique and to pass on these skills, to help preserve an important piece of Scotland’s heritage.