Philia
Magazine

Maria Loram is a ceramic artist based in California whose practice explores the space between the organic and the cosmic through sculptural and functional ceramic works. Born in Russia and shaped by a multidisciplinary background spanning science, linguistics, yoga, and visual art, her work is deeply informed by Eastern philosophies, wabi-sabi aesthetics, and an ongoing fascination with material transformation.

Working with clay, paper, and experimental glaze techniques, Loram creates textured forms that evoke weathered landscapes, celestial surfaces, and artifacts shaped by time. Her process combines wheel throwing, handbuilding, glaze research, and painterly surface experimentation, resulting in pieces that feel both minimal and emotionally resonant.

Since returning to ceramics in 2022, Loram’s work has been exhibited internationally and featured through galleries and collections across the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe. Alongside her studio practice, she has participated in artist residencies, taught workshops focused on glazes and textures, and continues to explore ceramics as a language of touch, impermanence, and quiet contemplation.

Louise Liljencrantz is a Swedish designer and co-founder of Veermakers. Her work explores the relationship between sculptural form and functionality, with a particular sensitivity toward materiality, craftsmanship, and proportion.

Working between Stockholm and Paris, she develops collectible furniture and interiors defined by a refined balance between Nordic restraint and contemporary expression. Through Veermakers, Liljencrantz approaches design with a strong attention to detail, creating pieces that feel both timeless and tactile.

Veermakers recently opened its first showroom in Le Marais, Paris, further expanding the studio’s presence within the contemporary collectible design scene.

Marjan van Aubel is a Dutch designer whose pioneering practice explores the intersection of sustainability, technology, and design through the lens of solar energy. Based in Amsterdam, she has developed a distinctive approach that transforms sunlight into both a functional and aesthetic medium, integrating solar technology into everyday objects such as furniture, lighting, and architectural elements.

A graduate of the Royal College of Art and the Gerrit Rietveld Academy, van Aubel has collaborated with scientists and institutions to create works that challenge conventional perceptions of renewable energy, positioning it as a poetic and experiential force. Her projects, exhibited internationally and held in major museum collections, aim to redefine our relationship with energy by embedding it seamlessly into daily life, advocating for a future where sustainability and beauty are intrinsically connected.

Ido Yoshimoto is a California-based artist whose practice is deeply shaped by the forests and landscapes of West Marin. After more than two decades working as an arborist, he turned to art, bringing with him an intimate understanding of trees, their structures, and their natural life cycles. Working primarily with salvaged and locally sourced wood, Yoshimoto creates sculptural and functional pieces that preserve the character and history of their material while introducing deliberate geometric interventions.

Through an intuitive and material-led approach, Yoshimoto explores the dialogue between natural growth and human intention, allowing the irregularities, textures, and forms of the wood to guide each work. Balancing raw organic expression with precise craftsmanship, his practice reflects on transformation, impermanence, and the passage of time, revealing new possibilities within materials that might otherwise be overlooked.

My earliest memories are very domestic and very visual. As a child, I was obsessed with spaces — everywhere I went, I had to touch and see all the rooms. I didn’t know it then, but I was fascinated by how materials, colours, and lighting could tell a different story in every space.

At the same time, I spent hours drawing, making things with my hands, and even doing my brother’s art homework for fun.

Beatriz Bolibar is a Barcelona-based interior designer and ceramic artist, and the founder of Cuit Studio. Trained in Interior Design at BAU and later completing a master’s degree in Hospitality Design at Elisava, she developed her early career working across high-end kitchens, as well as bars and restaurants in Amsterdam. While her professional path initially unfolded within hospitality, her focus gradually shifted toward the home — intimate, lived-in spaces shaped by light, material, and everyday rituals.

Working with ceramics since the beginning of her career, Bolibar developed a parallel practice that has become central to her work. What began as an intuitive and personal exploration evolved into a tactile extension of her spatial thinking, allowing her to move between scale, from architecture to object.

Through Cuit Studio, she brings together interior architecture and hand-built stoneware pieces — often conceived as lighting, vessels, or quiet sculptural forms that inhabit domestic environments. Her work is guided by a slow, material-driven process rooted in craftsmanship, where texture, weight, and imperfection are embraced as essential qualities.

Balancing structure with sensitivity, her practice reflects a contemporary approach to living — one that values restraint, atmosphere, and emotional resonance over spectacle. Each project and object is conceived as part of a broader narrative of the home, where design is not only seen, but lived with over time.

My earliest memories are very domestic and very visual. As a child, I was obsessed with spaces — everywhere I went, I had to touch and see all the rooms. I didn’t know it then, but I was fascinated by how materials, colours, and lighting could tell a different story in every space.

At the same time, I spent hours drawing, making things with my hands, and even doing my brother’s art homework for fun.