Coveted Treasures Of The Archipelago

Mary Justice is an adventurer and her joy in the discoveries made in the Indonesian archipelago both East and West of the Wallace Line, including the deep oceans of the Indian and Pacific are captured in her designs. Launched on the cusp of 2020, our debut collections include the Deep Ocean, Panthera, Flights of Fancy, Certainly Simian and Flora. Coming early in 2020 we will expand our collections with Seascapes, Curious Creatures and Seasons.

A unique story is woven into every piece of this exclusive decorative art. They capture precious moments of biodiversity and give rise to an old-world style of elegant, engaged entertaining.

Painted in intricate detail, the pieces feature exotic and endangered species, each bound to evoke fascinating conversations and become the pride of any social space.

This timeless fine art celebrates the natural wonders of Indonesia. It offers a glimpse through the eyes of Indonesia’s early natural history explorers with an element of whimsy that reflects MJ’s personality and obsession with decorative arts.

Fine Art Heirlooms Of Indonesia

The creative process was guided by a desire to turn finely designed functional furniture into coveted conversation pieces. Each reflects and re-imagines the natural treasures found in the “Age of Discovery” by using the Renaissance’ gesso’ technique of painting on wood as opposed to natural history drawings and actual specimens. As Mary Justice likes to share “no animals were harmed or exported in the name of vanity and scientific research. Instead, I capture these moments on my travels and bring my ideas back to the studio where they come to life.”

The inaugural collection has five aesthetic themes. The Panthera featuring big cats, Certainly Simian with a focus on primates, Deep Ocean portrays the vibrant marine life of the Archipelago, Flights of Fancy which is centred around our avian friends and Fauna and Flora - artwork featuring the floral life and vegetation of Indonesia

Across this first collection, you’ll find several different styles of furniture. The first is a tilt-top or occasional table with a removable top that can serve as a tray. There’s also a butler tray with two nesting trays, a folding table with nesting trays and a ‘Lazy Susan’ for easy at-home entertaining. They are multi-functional works of art; each piece makes a party and enlivens any space.

our process

Mary Justice’s design ideas are gleaned from specific natural discoveries, then hand-drawn and watercoloured in the studio by our in house artist. These original drawings are then painstakingly painted onto the gessoed wood, a Renaissance technique, which takes 9-12 strokes of paint to create the equivalent of one paint stroke if working on canvas. The bases are slowly chiselled from one of two types of sustainably sourced Indonesian wood using original hand-held tools that are passed down through the generations. Machines play no role in creating our artworks.

Our Certainly Simian collection features ebonized mahogany which is then finely polished in hard wax with plenty of “elbow grease” for a supremely elegant finish. The Flora collection features waxed natural antiqued teak with a flawless patination that improves with age, and the Panthera is finished in “stormy hand-painted mahogany” that is an artwork in itself.

Every piece of this fine decorative art takes three weeks to a month to painstakingly complete. As such, we can only make 10- 15 pieces in a numbered limited-edition run to ensure the highest quality for these exclusive and very collectable artworks.

The multi-layered nature of the imagery represents MJ’s years of study abroad and her 32 years in Asia delving into the cultures and art of the silk route and the Malay Archipelago. Her thirst for knowledge has been combined with the artists she works with an immense personal desire to portray Indonesia’s ethereal biodiversity at its finest.

As such, collectors shall receive a certificate of authenticity and a “show and tell card” with the details of the flora and fauna that are depicted. This includes background information about the artist and the sustainable materials used.

Embracing the eco-friendly zeitgeist of modern times, Mary Justice Designs uses only sustainably sourced local timber, sustainable construction methods and tongue and groove (dovetailing) methods that stand the test of time.

An ongoing belief in community responsibility has driven her to allocate a contribution of her profits to conservation funds both on land and sea. Currently, MJD LLC. is in discussion with the conservation groups that best serve Indonesia’s specific problems with climate change.