ABOUT
US

Objects and materials that we throw away, sigh with the hope of being saved, just before we say good-bye in a farewell moment. They deserve a second chance, transforming themselves, to show their new utility to the world that rejected them.

They need to redeem themselves, from their sentenced life cycle, to realize their dream. Our work is to resuscitate materials and find lost treasures in the discarded items of the modern world´s progress. And we have lots of fun doing it.

History

Nukak is a brand founded in Barcelona in late 2016. It was created by Patricio Abreu, who also started Vaho in 2001, and Pedro Ribosa, a professional in the audio-visual field. The brand’s name is inspired by the last nomadic tribe living in the Colombian jungle, the Nukak Maku, and is defined by giving a second life to discarded materials. Nukak represents a return to our roots.

The idea to create bags and accessories from reused materials arose from the founding of a small multidisciplinary design studio. Our research into and repurposing of an endless array of discarded materials resulted in a variety of accessories and furniture products. Of particular note were the bags we made from PVC advertising banners. Since then, we’ve reused the banners that hung from lampposts as part of advertising campaigns in cities like Barcelona and Madrid, among other materials. You won’t find two identical bags, as none of the graphic designs are repeated.

The production process of our bags consists of various stages, from the discarded material being converted into raw material to its transformation into a functional object ready to fulfil its new purpose. All the production is done locally at our Barcelona workshops, in an ethically-minded collaboration with local providers.

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The materials we use in the making of our bags and accessories are quite varied. They were all created for a different purpose, having been developed to fulfil their potential during a life cycle that was thought to have concluded. Each piece of material retains the qualities that make its repurposing possible. Our work begins with these materials, and as such we are always researching and looking for more.

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