SOLD OUT: Alexsandra Pontonio, KNOT PINE

Until 2019, a 25-metre-tall heritage-listed Monterey pine stood before the Walsh Street residence that architect, writer and cultural critic Robin Boyd designed for his family in 1957. The tree died, and the Robin Boyd Foundation’s supply of felled timber provides an opportunity to consider its second life. The community admired the tree when living; now milled, pine is commonly viewed as a ‘cheap’/’ugly’ material unsuitable for fine craftsmanship. Embracing pine’s democratic role in 20th-century industrial history, including modernist approaches – from Rietveld’s postwar Crate Chair (1935) to its everpresence across many IKEA designs the Foundation has commissioned furniture maker Alexsandra Pontonio to design a seated solution for the timber supply.

Join us at Walsh Street to celebrate Knot Pine through a floor talk with Alexsandra Pontonio exploring the creative process from design to prototype. Alexsandra will be joined in conversation by Josephine Briginshaw, Robin Boyd Foundation and Mat Ward, Uro Publications.

This event is part of Melbourne Design Week 2025, an initiative of the Victorian Government in collaboration with the NGV.

The Knot Pine Project is supported by the Creative Projects Fund through Creative Victoria, MSD Maker Spaces and Haymes Paint.

This talk is generously supported by Konpira Maru Wines and Yumbo Soda Co.

Alexsandra Pontonio is an award-winning Naarm/Melbourne-based furniture maker and designer. Her bespoke pieces are contemporary in design and reflect a sensitivity to traditional woodcraft. Her practice is underpinned by a deep understanding and respect for materials; her work predominately made from wood emphasises timber’s intrinsic tactility and materiality. Alexsandra graduated with an Associate Degree in Design (Furniture) from RMIT University in 2015 after which she was the recipient of the Future Leader’s prize in Craft Victoria’s 2016 Fresh! exhibition, the VIVID Design Award, and the Tait Award for Design Innovation at Fringe Furniture. As she has established her practice, she has received high profile recognition for her work, including Wood Review’s Maker of the Year Awards in 2021 (Chests, cabinets and shelving) and 2020 (Overall runner-up) and as a finalist in the 2021 Victorian Craft Awards. Alexsandra has been involved in selected group exhibitions including David Clark’s ‘At Home -Modern Australian Design’, Government House, Sydney, Craft Victoria’s ‘Future Remains’, Melbourne, and the Salone Satellite, Milan.

Maitiú Ward / Managing Director/Publisher / Uro Publications
Maitiú Ward is journalist and publisher with a special interest in architecture and design. In 2017, he opened Australia’s only specialist architecture and design bookstore, Bookshop by Uro, which he currently co-owns and manages alongside his publishing business, Uro Publications.

Please note:
– Attendees must be 16 years and over.
– No external food or drink permitted.
– Large bags and backpacks will need to be checked in at entry.
– Stiletto or pointed heels are not permitted due to our cork flooring.
– Tickets are refundable up to 72 hours prior to talk.
– Tickets can be exchanged, as long as purchaser advises us of the attendee name.

Image: Terrestrial laser scan, Monterey Pine at Boyd House II/Walsh Street, 2019, RMIT Landscape Architecture + Openwork.