June 2023
To get to the workshop, you must pass an industrial area north of the Podilsky district. What would anyone be looking for in this place? Probably nothing if you don’t know what you’re after.
The YALANZHI OBJECTS family (yes, the brand family indeed) heads this way to their workshop daily to create their sense of home for other people.
The first thing catching our eye is a flower garden on the lawn opposite the entrance and fences made of flower pots that accompany us right up to the door. We especially advise you to visit in the afternoon; at that time, you will simply drown in the sunset light from huge windows.
When the creation of the product had just begun, YALANZHI OBJECTS was an Odesa family production arranged by the efforts of parents, relatives, and friends. After moving to Kyiv, the parents stayed home in Odesa, not expecting that their history of commitment to the brand was just beginning. Due to the full-scale invasion and the service of Yevgen, Yulia’s partner, in the Armed Forces, her parents moved to the capital to support the common cause with their hands. That’s right, the couple takes a direct part in the production and manufacture of lighting, the improvement of the workshop, and even the area’s renovation.
If you were up to visit, the family would be happy to show you the end products, materials, and color samples and give you a short tour of the surroundings. There is a gallery, a cozy kitchen with cucumbers on the windowsill, a rose garden carefully created by Yulia, and even a riverside. At the same time, the workshop is so fulfilled with warmth and support; the family’s friend Yosya runs under the feet – a grizzled dog that dutifully guards all the magic against uninvited guests. Everyone moves along their trajectory of daily tasks, however, harmoniously fitting into the common system of the family. Everyone is at their place.
At the same time, it is difficult to miss out on how the processes are devoid of mechanics – this is even more than manual work. The awe with which each participant treats what will one day become your lamp is simply unbelievable. This awe is in how the products are brought out into the sun to dry, are hastily saved from the rain, and are sculpted, polished, and painted.
However, a clear schedule and adherence to deadlines are maintained even in a family environment: at lunchtime or after a working day, the entire team gathers around a large table. Here you will find seasonal dishes and homemade potatoes prepared by Yulia’s mother, and if you are nice enough, you will be treated to a craft elderberry drink, of course, family-made.
Three generations are involved in the work simultaneously: Yulia and Yevhen, her parents, and her son. Having visited here, you can feel peace from the cycle that surrounds you: the cycle of the working day, the cycle of life, and the cycle of generations. Here, grandfather teaches Lev (Yulia’s son – ed.) operating tools, and here Yulia shows an example of painting a lamp and the correct combination of colors. Cyclicality that will never become a routine – here it is, the holy of holies of YALANZHI OBJECTS.
If you are interested in seeing the place or getting acquainted with the specifics of the material and feeling it live, please