Ana Kraš

Ana Kraš
Born	1984 (age 39–40) Belgrade, SFR Yugoslavia
Occupation(s)	Designer and photographer
Known for	Bonbon lamps
Notable work	Ana Kraš: Ikebana Albums (Prestel Publishing, 2016)
Website	anakras.com

Ana Kraš (Serbian Cyrillic: Ана Краш; born July 25, 1984) is a Serbian furniture designer, photographer and fashion designer who is based in Paris, France. She has gained recognition for her Bonbon Lamps and for her photography for the Copenhagen Fashion Week sets, as well as for swimwear.^[1]

Background

Born in Belgrade, Serbia, Kraš studied furniture design at the University of Arts in Belgrade.^[2] In her final year of studies, she won the Young Balkan Designers contest, allowing her to exhibit a plywood chair Hug at the Milan Furniture Fair (Salone del Mobile) in Italy.^[3] The designer Konstantin Grcic, who headed the jury, gave her some valuable advice, encouraging her to be more free in her work.^[4][5] As a teenager, she briefly modeled in Japan after declining modeling contracts in New York and Paris.^[6] She moved to Los Angeles in 2011 before settling in Manhattan in 2013.^[7]

Career

Design

Kraš has exhibited at NYC Design week, Maison et Objet in Paris, and at design weeks in Vienna, Belgrade, and Budapest.^[7][8][9] Naomi Smart of Vogue appreciates her "slick personal style" and her "organic-modernist mash-up aesthetic".^[10] Kras first gained attention for her handmade lamps, especially her Bonbon Lamps, made with recycled threads from the fashion industry.^[11][12] In 2019, Kraš collaborated with the Danish company HAY to produce a version of the Bonbon Lamps to be sold in their stores.^[13]

Kraš has a varied portfolio touching many aspects of design as well as photography.^[3][14] She has designed tables,^[15] lamps, wallpaper,^[16] and swimwear.^[17] In 2017, Kras oversaw visuals for the fashion designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh and also designed the set at Copenhagen Fashion Week for fashion designer Ganni.^[18] Other fashion houses she's collaborated with include Martin Margiela and Etudes Studio.^[19] Vogue and W Magazine have named Kras the "It Girl" of good taste.^[3][10] Ambra Medda, co-founder and former director of Design Miami, has listed Kras as one of her favorite young designers.^[20][21]

Photography and fine art

Regarding her photography, Kraš has done work for Ganni, as well as for Lou & Grey (see Ann Inc.). This includes the Lou & Grey look book and their online magazine Ampersand. In 2016, Kras released her photography book Ana Kraš: Ikebana Albums, which focuses on both portraits and landscapes.^[22][23] In 2017, Kraš collaborated with Natalie Weinberger for a showing at the Picture Room gallery in Brooklyn, New York. The exhibition, entitled "Family", consisted of ceramic sculptures and drawings which explored the "emotional interplay between inanimate objects".^[24]

References

1. Molvar, Kari (June 4, 2015). "At Home With Ana Kras, New York Design Star of the Moment". The New York Times. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
2. "Ana Kraš". Side Effects. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
3. Lawrence, Vanessa (July 24, 2014). "Ana Kraš: It Girl, It Trend". W Magazine. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
4. "Semaine". Archived from the original on March 11, 2018. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
5. "A Studio Visit with Ana Kraš—Pamono Stories".
6. "Ana Kras, artist". Into The Gloss. March 2014. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
7. "Ana Kraš". Chamber. Archived from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
8. Martin, Hannah (April 28, 2017). "Where Are All the Women Designers?". AD: Architectural Digest. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
9. Navey, Kezia. "Ana Kraš' Semaine". Semaine. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
10. Smart, Naomi (August 28, 2017). "Meet Ana Kraš, The It Girl With Designs On Your Home". Vogue. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
11. Charmoy, Maud (March 11, 2013). "The moodboard of Ana Kras". Vogue, Paris. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
12. Carnick, Anna. "Ana Kraš: A studio visit with the rising Serbian design star". Pamono. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
13. Stinson, Liz (November 5, 2019). "Hay is bringing a cool designer yarn lamp to the masses". Curbed. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
14. Bonesso, Lily (February 11, 2013). "Ana Kras's floral arrangements". Dazed. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
15. Tucker, Emma (April 24, 2017). "Faye Toogood and Philippe Malouin design minimal furniture for Matter Made's XVII exhibition". Dezeen. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
16. "Calico Wallpaper Collaborates with Faye Toogood, Snarkitecture, Ana Kraš and BCXSY". AD: Architectural Digest. April 4, 2017. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
17. Hartman, Eviana (December 29, 2016). "Ana Kraš Dives into Fashion: A First Look at Her New Swimwear Collaboration". Vogue. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
18. Ahmed, Osman (February 6, 2018). "Ana Kraš' Visual Homage to Copenhagen's Eclectic Beauty". AnOther. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
19. "Ana Kraš". Pamono. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
20. "Ana Kras | Missoni". Archived from the original on October 19, 2013. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
21. "Design Gatekeepers: Ambra Medda".
22. Kras, Ana (2016). Ikebana Albums. Prestel Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7913-8274-6.
23. Bobb, Brooke (November 15, 2016). "3 Days in Iceland With Artist and Designer Ana Kraš". Vogue. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
24. "Ana Kras and Natalie Weinberger's Powerhouse Collab at Picture Room". June 27, 2017.