Ana and Maria Joao are a duo of creative who want to incorporate different types of approaches and material in the objects of our everyday lives. Their motto is "reuse, reduce, reapply, renew and recycle" furniture transforming them, retrieving them to gain a new life.
What led you to focus on the transformation of mobile?
Maria João Pinto: We already knew before starting this project. Also, we did the pieces of furniture in our houses. Many are decorated and made by us. Ana and I are without placement and join forces to enhance our capabilities and we remember it, things we already did both and wanted to put into practice.
I noticed a bet on furniture. What inspires you? You look the piece and already know what to change it or not?
Ana Santos Silva: We looked at the piece and see what that she's mean. Sometimes several ideas arise; we discuss them and decide together what will be most suitable for the furniture. Miró is a painter who Maria Joao likes and then she decided to put his drawings on the sideboard. I really like Pollock and put it on the chair and feet. It's just black and white, but I do appreciate those colors.
MJP: We are teachers and always researched much in the area of art, also the two of us teaches artistic expression in school, took many ideas from magazines, online, and of colleagues. Before starting a project we launch ideas, many ideas.
ASS: Also we thought in the various materials.
MJP: We used also different techniques, we searched shops with craftsmen and we put everything together in a little mental and physical file (smaller!) And them when we try to adapt each piece to the picture that emerges. It is the result of a melting pot of ideas. We always start the pieces together.
How you find the furniture? There are people that bring it to the studio to be changed, or you go looking for antiques?
MJP: The two. Some furniture was wasted. Other people were tired of them and brought them to us do what we wanted with it.
ASS: We also made a kind of fundraising with our families, in our attics. (Laughs)
MJP: There are pieces of furniture that people bring to be changed, because they are tired of them and we also do it.
But, you customize taking in account the taste of the customer or there is also an exchange of ideas with them?
MJP: Those on display are to our liking. But if one wants to transform a piece they have at home, we change it according to the person's taste. If they let us we throw ideas until we reach a consensus.
ASS: We organized small meetings, because when people come to us with furniture, we pass on ideas for that piece and also for them to realize what they would like to see. Sometimes they want photographs of their children, or tell us a particular artist they like, or even bring the clipping from a magazine and we tried to adapt our and the customer's ideas.
You are responsible for all phases of restoration?
ASS: Yes, also the carpentry.
MJP: We've had completely broken pieces, other's we had to dismount to reassemble because it keep wagging.
What was the piece of furniture that had more work?
ASS: The first bureau had a lot of work.
MJP: It was very old and had some very complicated closing drawers. It was the first piece of furniture we painted and did not work well, then an error occurred, we had to undo to get back to doing it again.
ASS: This was special because it ended up being the first combination of ideas. It went very well, we had no conflict, we have always more or less the same vision for the piece of furniture and there is always a happy ending. It was the first. There is no love like the first. (Laughs)
How long takes the whole process of restoration?
MJP: Clean, dry and varnish are about three to four days.
ASS: We initiated several projects at the same time because of the drying process. We alternate. We are currently reorganizing since we opened the store, because in the beginning all we did was brainstorming and implementation. It was MJ says we were hungry to do things.
What kind of people look for your services?
MJP: The senior population.
ASS: At first we thought it would be a younger audience that adhered to this type of concept, but no. We have people who come only to give advice, or curiosity. They also appear to get ideas; they do not know what to do some of the furniture at home. Even children enter the store attracted by the bright, or the more colorful patterns.
Turning inside out why?
MJP: Because we have changed all from the original.
ASS: The name took some time. We thought the "junk from my grandmother." The idea came when MJ was sewing and I remembered my grandmother saying that one should turn the inside out of the collars of shirts to seem as new and hence the name "turning inside out."
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