About Tina Astrup

My name is Tina Astrup, and I am a trained designer. In my practice, I work with wood as sculptural objects for decorative and exhibition purposes.

My approach is experimental. I explore how chemical processes in nature interact with wood and, from there, develop my own methods of creating patterns on wood. I am fascinated by the way echoes of past events hide in the materiality of the wood. When I work, I explore the life history of the tree, highlighting the beautiful textures that have emerged over time.

Exploring possibilities in lesser-known tropical tree species is an evolving area within my practice. It has been informed by my understanding of the importance of our role in promoting sustainable forestry in the tropics. By bringing lesser-known tree species to my audience, I aim to increase awareness of and appreciation for them and thereby cultivate an incentive to preserve the rainforest—and along with it, the world’s diversity of trees. It is my hope that an increase in sustainable forestry techniques also brings increased opportunities for the people living in the rainforest to build lasting livelihoods.

With the structures and objects I make, I want to bring focus to the broad range of color and material textures in tropical tree species, which I believe have untapped potential in both architecture and design.