Meet the maker - REND Studio

Meticulously hand crafted Bonsai display stands made in the UK.

We peer across a dusty workbench and explore the tool laden workshop of REND Studio, the creative hub of tiny tree enthusiast and Fine Art trained sculptor Christopher Morgan. REND is currently producing a growing selection of handmade Bonsai display stands, accent pieces and finely crafted furniture for practitioners of the Japanese art form across the United Kingdom and worldwide.

Based near Newcastle upon Tyne in the wild Northumbrian landscape of the north east of England, UK, REND has an output of modern and innovative, hand crafted Bonsai display stands. Working to commission and one-off, bespoke designs. We find out a little more about the woodworker behind REND, Christopher Morgan.

ABOUT REND.

How did you start out?

CM: I trained for several years as a painter at Northumbria University in Newcastle upon Tyne, the same place Jony Ive (Chief Designer at Apple) studied, mainly because I'd always been fairly good at drawing, but quickly moved to sculpture at art school as I'd always been drawn to the physicality of objects. I always wanted to know how stuff was made, and if I could take it apart.. could I put it back together..

Funnily enough I think most of my creativity comes down to my (ongoing) love of LEGO!

Was it an easy cross over into furniture making?

Yes I think so. With art, and particularly sculpture you're working with (fairly) stable materials. I think that's why I love bonsai so much. With bonsai you're dealing with something which, if handled incorrectly, could die, there are limitations to a certain extent. There's something about that crossover that I love, using wood to not only explore shapes and formal aspects of design in furniture making, but also the wild, almost poetic notion of a living tree's existence, it's history and place in the world. There's temporality to it which I really enjoy.

Why Bonsai stands?

I guess really it was out of necessity. In the same way that we might turn to creating our own ceramics or vessels, there was a time when my trees needed something that I couldn't find elsewhere. I knew from when I was building furniture in the past that the skills were there, but the designs and this idea of telling a story through my designs, could add a whole new level to the tree - even though my trees are pretty modest by comparison.

Where does the name REND come from?

The word 'Rend' (to rend) has a physical nature to it. As tranquil as bonsai is as a finished contemplative art form, the process to create the tree is a really physical one. Witnessing a tree undergo such a remarkably unpredictable transformation, both in its natural environment in the wild and at our hands, confined to a pot, only to emerge as a source of profound tranquility—this is the essence of what REND represents to me. I source a lot of timber from trees that have been brought down by storms, or fallen due other natural factors, for the result of this to be a (hopefully) beautiful piece of furniture which is balanced, well made, yet never overpowers the tree chosen to sit on it, I think is in line with REND.

Can you walk us through your creative process from concept?

A lot of my ideas for the more modern designs come from the wood I'm using. So if a piece of wood has great figure or live edge quality I'll try to incorporate this. If it's figure is more regular then it would lead to a cleaner more traditional design. But I think in the West we have a great opportunity in Bonsai, one that's often overlooked, to explore these ideas and to push boundaries a little. We're not bound by decades of tradition, and we should use this freedom to explore aesthetics and tell an even broader story with our trees and our compositions.

I sketch loads. This is usually to work out formal aspects like joints, or decorative details, how things might go together etc. I actually try not to work out too many finished details so that I don't become to slavish to the design. I have certain criteria which I like to hit, things such as finished height - these are important in most furniture builds as they're functional objects at the end of the day, and my outlook is that they must serve that purpose first and foremost. If I'm working with a client they may have a finished tree they're looking to compliment, so I would have that in mind too, the flow of the directional branch and apex.

Where do you gain inspiration?

In nearly all of my work there's an intersection between natural and man made and it's often the contrasting elements and details I'm looking for. I like the clean lines of Modernism for its starkness, but I also bring in classical elements too. These can translate into moulding ideas and non obtrusive decoration. I like to draw inspiration form architects like David Chipperfield and Eero Saarinen.

Deadwood from trees washed up on beaches near me serve as great sources of inspiration. Bamburgh and Alnmouth beaches in Northumberland are great places to find these craggily and rugged pieces of wood.

Do you have a favourite tool on your workbench?

My lifesaver tool is definitely a calculator ha!..But my most versatile tool when it comes to shaping is definitely my Shinto rasp. It's a viscous looking object but you can realise crazy shapes with it in next to no time at all! When it comes to bonsai stands, my favourite tools are my hand planes. Putting an almost mirror finish to a block of raw timber is something special - almost as special as adding that first coat of finish and seeing the figure and grain come to life!

Do you have a favourite species of wood to work with?

I really enjoy working with Elm, there's such a variety of grain types within the species including some crazy burls, similarly with English Pippy Oak. I tend toward English and European walnut, Cherry and I'd really love to work with Yew or Thuja.

Sometimes within bonsai there's a need to work with darker toned woods, or species that take stain well, this is especially true when displaying conifers. However when playing with seasonality in a design and for deciduous species, lighter woods can offer some great options, Maple, Birch and English Sycamore. I recently made a very elegant stand from Pear!

...so no haha!

What are your artistic goals for the future?

I hope that through REND there is a place where artists and practitioners can come to explore an aesthetic which maybe doesn't exist. There is enough bandwidth in Bonsai as an art form to really express yourself, to have your own style and direction and to make a statement (if that's what you wish to explore). Yes it's a traditional art form practiced in Japan, but in the West we have the freedom to express ourselves too. I hope my designs can sit in a complementary space, and artists practicing bonsai can use my designs to further their own ideas.

REND is a studio and workshop which produces bespoke designs and client led commissions.

To work with Chris and REND follow the Link below and get in touch.

COMMISSION REND