One of the core philosophies of Camp Copeland Studio is the idea that people do not need a lot of objects to make them happy. Happiness comes from mindful living and being present in the moment during our days out and at home. Our mission is to help you live well with fewer, better things that are high quality and meant to last. We believe in a balanced interior design style with a curated room aesthetic where objects mean something to the owner and don’t just take up space on the shelf and collect dust. It is proven that a cluttered home directly leads to a cluttered mind. On that same token, we don’t believe that you have to live a completely minimalist lifestyle void of color and the occasional accent piece. We want you to make mindful purchases that help you live a conscious life. Your money should be spent on objects focusing on elevating design above the cheaply made mass produced alternatives that make you happy and less stressed. Objects that spark joy or provide function to your home. Objects you will cherish and can pass down as family heirlooms.
Our philosophy is directly inspired by the Swedish lifestyle concept of lagom. Lagom doesn’t have a direct translation into English, but it basically means “Not too much, not too little.”. This “just enough” attitude is an all-encompassing lifestyle ideology to slow down, be present in the moment and live life in balance by focusing on mind and body wellness. Lagom can be practiced by taking a mindful minute during your work day to center yourself, or making a cup of matcha tea and focusing on the act of measuring the powder and whisking it together with the water while taking deep, calming breaths. One very fundamental aspect of lagom is to clear the clutter in your home and only surround yourself with objects that inspire you or induce contentment and happy living. This is a major attribute to Scandinavian design and is the intent of our Sfären series of handmade block prints. They are objects designed to be a place to relax your eyes and refresh your busy mind.
Sfär in Swedish translates to sphere. The sphere as a symbol in art represents the eternal, the subconscious and perfection. The Sfären print series examines this symbol as an exercise to achieve mind body centering by interacting with the interior spaces in our home. Being present in the moment and calming a busy mind are essential to balanced living. The focus is on harmony between the conscious and unconscious and between the physical and mental. The prints are designed to be a focal point in a room to be used, for instance as a 3 minute breathing space to rebalance, refresh and regroup or get past negative thoughts.
Each handmade relief print is created through the meditative process of carving away the surface of a block to make marks and open space. The image is not premeditated and dictates its own making. After the carving is complete ink is rolled onto the surface and the image is hand printed in our printmaking studio on thin archival shoji rice paper. The translucent and delicate nature of the paper invokes attributes of ancient parchment and it’s use is evokes memories of the Japanese masters such as Hiroshige and our favorite Tōshi Yoshida, whose abstract works inspired our printmaker Drew to start studying relief printing while in college. The works sit comfortably in Japandi interior design at the intersection of Swedish and Japanese minimalism. The use of this delicate rice paper also furthers the juxtaposition of brightness and darkness, heaviness and lightness and completes the balancing act to aid the viewer in arriving at a peaceful mind.
The Sfären series is meant to be viewed as an entire body of work, or alone, and will continue to grow in number. The principle is to assist the viewer in enacting calm through elevated design and Intentional decoration. Living in balance with just enough fewer, better things in a lagom way. We have a gallery wall in our library room where the sun pours in for much of the day. It’s a cherished space in our home where we can have a mindful moment and decompress. We want you to experience the same calm. To learn more or to see the entire Sfären series of prints click here.
Thank you for reading.
Drew + Alyssa
More on lagom