Three Legs Vase

After training inside his father’s metalsmith workshop from an early age, Io studied metal design in Japan and Korea. His vessels are characterised by fluid, flowing transitions and shapes achieved by combining traditional hammering technology and contemporary forms.
This three-legged vessel is an otherworldly ode to perseverance. Long fascinated by the 4000-year-old technique of hammer-raising, Io infuses modern ideas with traditional methodology to elicit soft, fluid forms. Made from a single sheet of metal which is hammered thousands of times, the transmutation
of the material aggregates into a sinuous record of labour. The red colour – achieved through another traditional Japanese technique – dates back to the 17th century, creating a vivid textural patina which, combined with its animalistic form, imbues the metal with organic allure.