The ontology of carved wood
- Didi specialises in creating textural pleats and charring effects on carved wood
- His works earned him Dezeen’s 2024 Emerging Designer of the Year Award 2024
- He is represented internationally by Spazio Nobile Gallery in Brussels
Didi Ng Wing Yin is a Helsinki-based contemporary woodcarver whose practice bridges sculpture, furniture and conceptual thinking. He works with experimental techniques to explore the expressive potential of softwoods such as pine and spruce. "It is only through interacting with the material that we can gain a better understanding of what it is,” Didi says. By processing wood through brushing, charring and the application of inks, he reveals the material's ‘subconscious’. Didi exhibits his works across Europe and Asia, and has received the Artist Year Working Grant from the Arts Promotion Centre Finland in 2026, and the Finnish Cultural Foundation Working Grant in 2024. He was also a finalist for the Loewe Foundation Craft Prize 2025 in Madrid.
INTERVIEW
Working with wood in Finland has shaped my perspective, particularly through the lens of the local summer cottage culture. This way of life is different from from my upbringing, it served as an invitation to reinterpret the inherent qualities of wood and rethink its creative potential within a new cultural context.
Before focusing on wood carving, I worked in furniture design. I draw inspiration from the work of Shiro Kuramata and, more recently, David Nash. Furthermore, movements like Mono-ha and Arte Povera have been instrumental in broadening my perspective. Each of these influences has played an essential role in shaping my creative path.
I first felt the strong power of art connecting people, craft and materiality through a sculpture I made while studying for my master’s degree at Aalto University in 2021. Titled The Door, the piece was built from two standing wooden planks whose surfaces were carved into a feather-like texture.
I focus on two techniques to create wood pleats and an ocean effect. I create pleated textures by brushing long-grained softwoods like pine and spruce, resulting in a soft, organic surface. I carve to distort the grain and form vibrant gradients. Then I use charring and inking to enhance the effect.
