For Jannis Schäfer, material is never secondary to form — it is the starting point.
Working between Barcelona and Munich, he develops a practice situated between design, sculpture, and material research. Rather than imposing an idea onto matter, he begins by observing what a material already contains: its weight, texture, structure, limitations, and potential.
This approach leads to an experimental process where objects emerge through transformation and recontextualization. Hempcrete becomes seating, industrial remnants become light, discarded fragments are reassembled into new spatial and functional relationships.
Play remains central to his method — not as spontaneity without direction, but as a way of questioning established systems of production and use. His work balances structural logic with material intuition, reflecting both his background in industrial design and his interest in ecological processes.
Questions of origin, lifespan, and reuse are embedded from the outset. Rather than treating sustainability as an addition, Schäfer integrates it directly into the act of making itself.
His objects occupy an unstable territory between utility and sculpture — forms that remain open, tactile, and materially honest.
Selected exhibitions with SM Bureau:
Matter in Bloom, Paris, 2026
Available works upon request.
