WaterLand Furniture Turns Dutch Reed And Fallen Wood Into Compostable Design

Dutch artist and designer Natasja van der Meer has created WaterLand, a collection of fully plant-based and compostable furniture made from locally sourced reed and wood. Comprising a chair, pouffe and bench, the collection demonstrates how natural materials, traditional craftsmanship and circular design principles can be combined without glue or screws.

Reed From A Protected Wetland

The reed used for WaterLand comes from the Naardermeer, a protected wetland in the Netherlands. It is harvested by one of the country’s few remaining professional reed cutters. Annual cutting helps keep the reed beds open. It also supports the habitat of marsh birds, insects and amphibians.

Van der Meer applies this renewable material using techniques connected to Dutch reed-thatching traditions. By translating a heritage craft into contemporary furniture, the project explores a new application for a material more commonly associated with roofing.

Fallen Wood Given A Second Life

The wooden components were made from a tree that fell on a station square in Van der Meer’s home city. Instead of being discarded, the windfall timber was processed by hand and incorporated into the furniture. The restrained treatment preserves the grain, irregularities and individual character of the wood.

Combining reclaimed timber with locally harvested reed reduces the need for virgin industrial materials and avoids conventional adhesives and metal fasteners. This mono-material-minded construction also supports a biological end-of-life scenario: once the furniture can no longer be used or repaired, its untreated plant-based components can decompose and return nutrients to the soil.

Designing Within A Biological Cycle

WaterLand reflects Van der Meer’s broader practice, which brings together art, design and craft through natural materials such as clay, wood and plants. She gathers these resources from her immediate surroundings wherever possible and begins each project by studying their origins and inherent properties.

Through this locally rooted approach, the designer investigates how material sourcing and craft can contribute to regenerative relationships with landscapes. Rather than treating nature solely as a supplier of raw materials, WaterLand connects furniture production to habitat management, waste prevention and biological cycles.

The collection will be presented for the first time during Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven, taking place from 17 to 25 October 2026. WaterLand forms part of WOW NATURE, an exhibition organised by Crafts Council Nederland. Van der Meer’s work has previously been exhibited internationally, including at Milan Design Week.

Source & photos: Natasja van der Meer