December 5, 2025 | vol 16
ASTRONAUTS
words Nicolas Vamvouklis
From stars to steel, a design duo in Athens lets materials and imagination guide the way.
Let’s start by introducing ASTRONAUTS.
ASTRONAUTS is a creative studio founded by Danae Dasyra and Joe Bradford, specializing in limited-edition objects. We first met during our design studies in the UK. Years later, we returned to Greece and transformed a long-standing friendship into a creative partnership.
Our practice is rooted in making. Materials and processes take the lead, and design emerges as our response. We subvert industrial manufacturing conventions by fabricating everything in-house, in our Athens-based workshop. Being physically close to the objects during their creation allows us to work sculpturally, which is essential to developing our distinctive visual language. We carefully consider how people encounter our work and strive to create moments of surprise. We want them to find beauty in the unexpected, to imagine the stories behind these objects, and to think about what they might become. In doing so, we hope to challenge conventional ideas of aesthetics and objecthood.
What does this name represent for you?
The name ASTRONAUTS pays homage to where our studio began—Greece. It combines “astro,” meaning star, and “nauts,” meaning sailor. The phrase “sailors of the stars” felt poetic to us. When we decided to follow the uncertain and unconventional path of a creative career, it felt like chasing an improbable dream—like a child saying they want to become an astronaut and travel into space. It speaks to that sense of wonder, risk, and the leap into the unknown. It reminds us that our journey is driven by curiosity, imagination, and belief.
What are the challenges of working as a duo?
We sit at opposite ends of the table, both literally and figuratively. Danae is the studio’s creative lead, responsible for the direction and design of our pieces, including color and material selection. Joe leads physical research and oversees fabrication, translating ideas into material outcomes. Our distinct yet complementary skill sets allow us to trust each other’s areas of expertise while remaining aligned in vision. Of course, as with any close collaboration, challenges arise. It’s impossible to fully satisfy both perspectives all the time. Compromise is essential. Our bench, Gemini, captures this duality. It’s a double-seater sculpture exploring unity and tension. The seats sit close but don’t face one another; they look in the same direction, yet aren’t perfectly aligned. Just like us.
WE FELT A RAW, UNFILTERED ENERGY IN ATHENS
What led you to settle in Athens?
During a vacation, we felt a raw, unfiltered energy in Athens. Compared to other European cities, it offered something rare: physical space, mental space, and potential. We saw an opportunity to build something of our own. Since relocating, we’ve been able to work in a full-scale studio—not just a corner desk. This change in scale has transformed our practice, allowing us to pursue larger, more complex projects.
Athens has a smaller creative scene, which fosters more direct, personal relationships.
Where do you usually draw inspiration from?
We consider ourselves a process-driven studio. Materials and techniques are our starting point, and design emerges as a response. At the moment, our work revolves around hydroforming—a process where sealed metal vessels are shaped and inflated using water. This has led water to become a recurring source of inspiration: the movement of rivers, the reflective surface of the sea, or the way droplets cling to glass. Water also appears in our narratives. For instance, our mirror Narcissus offers a modern retelling of the myth. The mirror’s reflective steel mimics the fatal pool that captivated the young man.
METAL IS OFTEN CODED AS MASCULINE, SO WE CHALLENGE THAT BY USING CURVACEOUS, FLUID FORMS
What draws you to this technique?
Joe discovered hydroforming on YouTube and suggested we try it out. It was fun from the start. The technique, traditionally industrial, felt fresh and full of creative potential. What we love most is its unpredictability. When inflating the metal, we can’t fully predict the final form. This partial surrender allows each piece to become truly unique. It makes our process sculptural—we respond to volume and shape in real time. Letting go of control creates room for surprise, and the results are often challenging in the best possible way.
Many of your pieces have a refined, otherworldly finish. How do you choose materials?
We gravitate toward materials and finishes that feel unfamiliar, as if they belong to another reality. They become blank canvases we can fill with meaning, narrative, and function. Because of hydroforming, metal is our material protagonist. The process distorts it to the point where it’s almost unrecognizable—many people mistake our work for plastic. That ambiguity is something we embrace.
There’s also a softness in pieces like Gemini. Do you enjoy exploring contrasts?
Absolutely. In Gemini, the metal has sharp, almost aggressive facets. So we paired it with soft, fluffy flokati. The result is a playful contradiction: Come sit—it’s cozy… but it might hurt.
Are you willing to take the risk?
As a studio composed of a male fabricator and a female creative director, we’re aware of stereotypes. We enjoy playing with those expectations. Metal is often coded as masculine, so we challenge that by using curvaceous, fluid forms. Sometimes we make the metal look wet. Pairing it with soft, tactile materials introduces unexpected femininity, adding nuance and ambiguity.
What are you currently working on?
We’re developing a new series that explores hydroforming with aluminum. We’re partnering with a finishing studio specializing in custom coloring techniques. Together, we’ll apply bespoke treatments to our new sculptural homewares. It’s an exciting evolution of our material vocabulary.
Speaking of dreams, what’s a project you’ve always longed to realize?
We dream of designing a sculptural water fountain for a public square in Athens. The city struggles with heat, and public water features can lower temperatures and improve microclimates. We’d love to create a large-scale, accessible piece that combines aesthetic presence with environmental function—something poetic, useful, and rooted in care for the city we call home.
