Studio Seitz Gets Experimental with Swiss Craftsmanship
The up-and-coming Brooklyn studio expands its Heritage Collection with heirloom-quality pieces that deftly reimagine the craft traditions of their Swiss forebears
In the small town in northeast Switzerland where designer Kevin Seitz grew up, the legacy of regional craftsmanship seemed universal. He recalls living with a set of furniture handed down to his grandparents in the 1950s that still felt pristine and sturdy, even after generations of use. Seitz’s ancestors were well-established craftspeople whose work has influenced handicraft industries across the country’s northern reaches for more than two centuries—and it’s likely that their influence strongly influenced Seitz’s own trajectory as well.
Seitz hopes to usher the legacy of Swiss craftsmanship into a new era. Last year at ICFF, Studio Seitz, the new studio he launched with his work-and-life partner Rob van Wyen, drew attention for its debut collection of five pieces, including an ebonized European ash bench and a dresser adorned with Baroque-inspired brass drawer pulls. Now, Seitz is expanding its Heritage Collection with an array of new offerings such as a nightstand, candle holders, and a table lamp with traditional Swiss provenance that still feels contemporary. Below, Seitz and van Wyen share their thinking behind the new launches.