Dupont Atelier was founded in 2022 by Natalie Dupont, and the atelier was established in the summer of 2023. Natalie Dupont studied Industrial Design (BA) at the Design School in Kolding and is currently in her final year of her MA at the same school. She mastered the craft of papermaking through an internship at the Paper Academy in Gilleleje, led by visual artist and papermaker Anne Vilsbøll.
Dupont Atelier focuses on Japanese papermaking, working with classic bast fibers such as Kozo to create washi (translation: Wa; Japanese, Shi; paper). Other types of paper made from various fibers are also crafted. Papermaking is a is a poetic medium, offering endless possibilities for exploring expressions. The paper is made from scratch at Dupont Atelier, after which lighting designs are created in collaboration with the paper and its shaping. All lighting designs are handmade by Natalie Dupont at Dupont Atelier, making each piece uniquely its own, functioning as sculptural elements for the home. Each piece comes to life in its own way, both when the light is on and off. The interplay between light and paper creates a serene atmosphere and a unique light that only handmade paper can emit. The rustic texture and appearance of the paper provoke curiosity and wonder in the observer.
Personal thoughts:
I believe that in simplicity, great complexity arises. The humility and the tranquility that simplicity conveys have the ability to resonate enormously within one and create an extreme feeling of speechless wonder. How often when one finds oneself in a magnificent room, is the most beautiful thing not to discover the small objects and items that do not ask to be found. How beautiful is it not, that in a simple stroke with a paint brush, the complexity of the feeling that was in the hand when it was made is illustrated. How the result of a sheet of paper depends on the calmness of the hand and breath, and the paper therefore illustrates the state of mind of the moment, depending on how calm or restless one was when the hands moved through the water and cast the sheet. When I create my objects, it is based on this fascination with the wondrous complexity of simplicity. The strength of randomness and the beauty of humble and honest objects, which when appreciated, are the ones that create the greatest feelings inside one. Through their immediate surface, they hide a world of philosophy, poetry, and sensory experiences, which once seen can no longer remain unseen.
‘Handmade washi is replete with appeal. Looking at it, touching it, fills me with an indescribable sense of satisfaction’ - Soetsu Yanagi
I am deeply fascinated with archeological finds, such as clay bricks and texts, where fingerprints, ink blots or some other kind of imprint is left with the reminiscence of a material worked with by humans and the sensibility of the hand. It’s evidence of the objects history, it tells a story and draws one in.
In the process of making paper, I work symbiotically with nature, and therefore nature has the last say in what marks it decides to place within the paper. These unique qualities in every single sheet of paper used to create the objects, contributes to the ability to connect and identify oneself to one lamp of the same design, more than another of the same design. There is room for your personality to merge coherently to the lamps identity. This connection helps to create a deeper appreciation of what we surround ourselves with within our own homes.
This is what I’m trying to convey in my craft. The importance of appreciating the craftsmanship and the individuality it brings forth in the final objects. There’s a new story to be discovered in every single sheet of paper. Not only is the exterior of an object important, but so is the interior. The structure creates in collaboration with the paper, architectural qualities and a room inside the lamp to be discovered.
This is a room for silence, calmness and contemplation. It is here the essence of the object begins and where the feeling of the objects being is centered. From within this space the calmness of the object emanates to the surrounding environment, and creates and equality and coherence between the two spaces.
When creating the lamps, I always want to experience the interior as much as the exterior, and it is a space, when I look upon and examines it, that fills me with an extreme calmness and awe of what simple structures and combinations of materials together can create and make room for.
And honestly, I could stare at it for hours.
The philosophy of my craft is that no two objects are similar. Every lamp and its sheets of paper differentiates in texture, beauty marks, nuances and transparency.
I’m fascinated by architecture, sculptures, the written word and the deep emotional connection they tend to convey inside of one. Everything I create comes from a deep appreciation of my surroundings, craftsmanship, culture and the said connection. I create my objects through an intense research of a cultural background, philosophy and aesthetic, and with a huge respect for what came before me. I create slowly and carefully.
Think of it as you would of a potter and their work with ceramics. Everything is handmade, cared for in every corner, a symbiotic process between human and one’s material and subject.
Through the paper craft I’m learning from a long line of artisans that created the paper with the same techniques that have been around for thousand of years. When I repeat the movements demanded of the craft, I imagine how this has been done for generations, and how the craft has been past down from mentor to apprentice. I’m in awe of the history, respect and culture and that I’ve been drawn to this path in my life. It’s a humbling way of working, and I so appreciate the outlook it creates on the importance of the beauty in humble surroundings, slowing down, connections, simplicity and calmness.
Everything is created by hand, every piece of paper and every design. It’s a medium for me to convey all the thing above, a way to remind myself of what I want to surround myself with, and to try to share some fragments of these emotions in the best way possible.
Dupont Atelier focuses on Japanese papermaking, working with classic bast fibers such as Kozo to create washi (translation: Wa; Japanese, Shi; paper). Other types of paper made from various fibers are also crafted. Papermaking is a is a poetic medium, offering endless possibilities for exploring expressions. The paper is made from scratch at Dupont Atelier, after which lighting designs are created in collaboration with the paper and its shaping. All lighting designs are handmade by Natalie Dupont at Dupont Atelier, making each piece uniquely its own, functioning as sculptural elements for the home. Each piece comes to life in its own way, both when the light is on and off. The interplay between light and paper creates a serene atmosphere and a unique light that only handmade paper can emit. The rustic texture and appearance of the paper provoke curiosity and wonder in the observer.
Personal thoughts:
I believe that in simplicity, great complexity arises. The humility and the tranquility that simplicity conveys have the ability to resonate enormously within one and create an extreme feeling of speechless wonder. How often when one finds oneself in a magnificent room, is the most beautiful thing not to discover the small objects and items that do not ask to be found. How beautiful is it not, that in a simple stroke with a paint brush, the complexity of the feeling that was in the hand when it was made is illustrated. How the result of a sheet of paper depends on the calmness of the hand and breath, and the paper therefore illustrates the state of mind of the moment, depending on how calm or restless one was when the hands moved through the water and cast the sheet. When I create my objects, it is based on this fascination with the wondrous complexity of simplicity. The strength of randomness and the beauty of humble and honest objects, which when appreciated, are the ones that create the greatest feelings inside one. Through their immediate surface, they hide a world of philosophy, poetry, and sensory experiences, which once seen can no longer remain unseen.
‘Handmade washi is replete with appeal. Looking at it, touching it, fills me with an indescribable sense of satisfaction’ - Soetsu Yanagi
I am deeply fascinated with archeological finds, such as clay bricks and texts, where fingerprints, ink blots or some other kind of imprint is left with the reminiscence of a material worked with by humans and the sensibility of the hand. It’s evidence of the objects history, it tells a story and draws one in.
In the process of making paper, I work symbiotically with nature, and therefore nature has the last say in what marks it decides to place within the paper. These unique qualities in every single sheet of paper used to create the objects, contributes to the ability to connect and identify oneself to one lamp of the same design, more than another of the same design. There is room for your personality to merge coherently to the lamps identity. This connection helps to create a deeper appreciation of what we surround ourselves with within our own homes.
This is what I’m trying to convey in my craft. The importance of appreciating the craftsmanship and the individuality it brings forth in the final objects. There’s a new story to be discovered in every single sheet of paper. Not only is the exterior of an object important, but so is the interior. The structure creates in collaboration with the paper, architectural qualities and a room inside the lamp to be discovered.
This is a room for silence, calmness and contemplation. It is here the essence of the object begins and where the feeling of the objects being is centered. From within this space the calmness of the object emanates to the surrounding environment, and creates and equality and coherence between the two spaces.
When creating the lamps, I always want to experience the interior as much as the exterior, and it is a space, when I look upon and examines it, that fills me with an extreme calmness and awe of what simple structures and combinations of materials together can create and make room for.
And honestly, I could stare at it for hours.
The philosophy of my craft is that no two objects are similar. Every lamp and its sheets of paper differentiates in texture, beauty marks, nuances and transparency.
I’m fascinated by architecture, sculptures, the written word and the deep emotional connection they tend to convey inside of one. Everything I create comes from a deep appreciation of my surroundings, craftsmanship, culture and the said connection. I create my objects through an intense research of a cultural background, philosophy and aesthetic, and with a huge respect for what came before me. I create slowly and carefully.
Think of it as you would of a potter and their work with ceramics. Everything is handmade, cared for in every corner, a symbiotic process between human and one’s material and subject.
Through the paper craft I’m learning from a long line of artisans that created the paper with the same techniques that have been around for thousand of years. When I repeat the movements demanded of the craft, I imagine how this has been done for generations, and how the craft has been past down from mentor to apprentice. I’m in awe of the history, respect and culture and that I’ve been drawn to this path in my life. It’s a humbling way of working, and I so appreciate the outlook it creates on the importance of the beauty in humble surroundings, slowing down, connections, simplicity and calmness.
Everything is created by hand, every piece of paper and every design. It’s a medium for me to convey all the thing above, a way to remind myself of what I want to surround myself with, and to try to share some fragments of these emotions in the best way possible.
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