SOL Designs

ABOUT SOL designs

Sol Desharnais recently returned from France to his home town of St-Pierre-Jolys, Manitoba. Sol is a contemporary artist and multidisciplinary designer of sets, interiors and fashion. His latest project is a unique collection of wood, 100% wool felt and leather handbags, part of the Around the Clock series. Sol consciously reinvents the object, designing with improbable association of materials in pure and minimal form. He's also a fan of coffee with friends. :)

SOL Desharnais

Artist statement

Unintentionally, bringing new meaning to raw and natural materials or from recycling is becoming a major part of my work. Working with materials such as wood, felt, leather and metals is always a grounding experience for me; there is something powerful about working with natural material that already has a story and challenging it with new definitions graphically and with organization. “I am influenced by the process of consciously appreciating the relationship between my emotions and the work that I create.”

Colour is a theme I explore in a very simple fashion. Colour tells a story on its own or in relationships with others, just as we do as beings. What is my true colour? What is yours? Every colour is unique and has its own language. I've often asked myself if I'm running around in circles, because the circle is a recurrent theme in my work. The circle is my sacred space. Speaking in a “circular language” allows me to focus on its multiple and endless meanings and interpretations – from its physical form, to notions of inclusion, wholeness, unity and finally, the spiritual meanings around the circle. I believe the circle includes us and beckons us, the viewer, to be drawn in and become part of the experience. Sol Desharnais