You know a couple is on a good wicket when they have a catchy hybrid name that sticks. In the celebrity world you have your Brangelinas and Kimyes. In the design world, and a little closer to home, we have Rowsaan, a metalsmithing practice run by partners in both life and business, Rowan McLachlan and Saan Davidson.
The pair met as young university students in Tasmania, and later followed one another to Melbourne for further study. Rowan’s background is in landscape architecture, and Saan’s in textile design. Shortly after graduating, they started making jewellery together, having learned some of the ropes in this field from Rowan’s parents, who are both jewellers. Originally mastering the art of traditional silvermithing and metalsmithing via their jewellery making practice, the pair saw the opportunity to apply these skills to make objects that could be used everyday in the home.
Their first foray into what would later become Rowsaan occured when Rowan and Saan picked up some secondhand furniture that had seen better days. They decided to make a set of handcrafted brass handles to liven up their roadside acquisitions. The rest is history. ‘From here on we saw an opportunity to be able to work on a creative practice together, making objects that we would use in our home and hopefully others would enjoy using too,’ mentions Saan.
It’s been two years since Rowsaan officially set up shop, and every piece in their range is made by hand out of their Kyneton studio. They make everyday objects including furniture handles, hooks, spoons and more recently, kitchen knives. Functionality and simplicity of form is central to Rowsaan’s creative output. ‘We aim to make work that is considered, detailed and nice to hold, touch and use,’ says Saan.
In the studio, Rowan and Saan split tasks between themselves for efficiency. Rowan doing most of the making, while Saan does saw piercing and filing processes, and ensures the pieces are ready for sale. The pair’s new range of kitchen knives, hand forged in the tradition of Japanese laminated blades, can take up to four days to make.
This year Rowsaan have already exhibited their work in two international exhibitions, most recently in collaboration with Groupwork and Sarah K for Tokyo Design Week! Next year they plan to add a few more pieces to their expanding collection, and will be running workshops as part of Hotel Hotel’s Fix and Make program.
Rowsaan pieces are available for purchase via their online store here.
