Marcin Rusak

Marcin Rusak is an artist and designer interested in ideas of value, ephemerality and aesthetics. Specializing in storytelling, process and material investigation his work often incorporates research, object and installation, as well as visual creations to explore overlooked details of our lives, which recreated and re-imagined, are shown again in a different light.

Marcin Rusak, Future Heritage 2018 Alumni

Born in Poland, he is the son and grandson of flower growers. He has long been fascinated by these natural sources of inspiration and decoration. Engaging them in his creative process began by reusing waste to investigate new decorative elements within everyday objects and led to a rich body of work ranging from research and storytelling, to cultural criticism around consumption and future scenarios.

Besides experimenting with the relation between art and science, the work of Marcin Rusak on organic vegetable matter, has explored the expressive potential of the flower: confirming its aesthetic value, for petals, leaves and stems – and more generally all the parts of this plant-system.

Rusak explores the way in which his works act and react in relation to the human figure, in contact with the environment and the flow of time.

Marcin Rusak Coffee Table

At Future Heritage

In 2015 he showed three specially made pieces, a dining table, screen and lamp from his ‘Flora,’ collection, developed through his long experimental investigation of a solid composite material made from a mixture of cut flowers and resin. This use of discarded materials from the production chain of the flower industry, explored ideas about over breeding, waste and reuse, but at the same time was a poetic expression, in which corollas of petals, stems and leaves became a medium to activate and foster a dialogue between art and science. 

In 2018 on a return visit to Future Heritage, Marcin Rusak launched a new series entitled ‘Merging Metals.’ The collection focused on showcasing the painterly qualities of merging metals. The collection employed a metal spraying technique traditionally used for large scale industrial manufacture, and rendered the process handmade, resulting in unique pieces. By applying metals such as bronze, brass, copper, zinc and aluminium to pieces as if they were three-dimensional canvases, Rusak created a truly original aesthetic landscape.

“Future Heritage is a fantastic platform for new and established designers to get exposure and interest from professionals from around the world. It was key in the launch my career.” – Marcin Rusak

Current work

In 2018 Rusak had a major show at the Horta Museum, Brussels and was shortlisted for the Beasley Award at the Design Museum in 2019. In the same year, he also undertook a residency in Turin with the IN Residence programme, working on ‘Encoded Symbols’ where using a zinc coating process, he transformed plant matter into solid metal elements, whilst conserving the characteristics of the original leaves and flower parts. The series of 5 light sculptures are set to be showcased with Carwan Gallery next year.

Marcin Rusak Coffee Table

If you would like to make an enquiry about Marcin Rusak and commissions, get in touch here > [email protected]