I grew up with a high reverence for what is frequently treated as low-brow craft. My home in NC was a short trip from the potters who set up shop on the rich clay beds at Jugtown in historic Seagrove, and seasonal festivals brought down a flood of weavers and outsider artists from the southern Appalachians. I kept a constant watch on how folks were working with the materials around them.

A degree in film from Emerson College landed me Los Angeles, working in set design for a few years, before going on to work for a sculptor. I later landed a job in the woodshop of my now-husband, Sam Moyer, where I learned the ropes of furniture making. One company ended up being too small for 2 headstrong people with diverging aesthetics, so I lit out on my own, and started Dzierlenga F+U.

The furniture of Dzierlenga F+U gives a referential nod to the primitive work I grew up seeing, paring away the unnecessary details, and elevating those basic ideas to the world of high design. The simple lines, silhouettes and palettes I use draw one’s attention to the wilder, more mystical characteristics of the wood itself.