Ateek Ji

When we began developing MRID, one of the questions was not simply how to weave the forms, but which wicker could make them possible. The market offers many varieties — flat, round and different grades and thicknesses — each behaving differently when bent, stretched or woven. Ateek ji’s experience became an important part of understanding which material could translate our ideas into something that could actually be made.

The silhouettes we were developing were unfamiliar territory for wicker. Rather than working within the forms traditionally associated with the material, we were asking it to take on new volumes and proportions. Akr and Saksh pushed this even further, requiring the wicker to follow sculptural silhouettes that are rarely, if ever, seen in conventional wickerwork.

Ateek ji helped us understand the material before we asked it to do more. His knowledge of how different canes respond to pressure, curvature and tension allowed us to experiment with forms that initially existed only as drawings and ideas.

Then there are the spheres - perhaps the most recognisable element of MRID collection. Each one is individually woven by Ateek ji, with the cane gradually brought around the form until a complete sphere emerges. Their repetition across the collection creates a visual language that feels simple, but is deeply dependent on the precision of the hand.

What makes his contribution particularly important is that he hasn’t simply executed an established wicker technique. He has helped us explore what wicker can become when it is taken into unfamiliar territory.