Naja Utzon Popov is a Danish sculptor, textile designer and ceramicist who is internationally oriented in her work. After 6 years in Australia and 15 years in London, she is now back in her native Denmark, where she based in the old Burmeister & Wein shipyard in Copenhagen. Her work is characterised by a deep fascination for the richness of form and colour in nature.
Naja (pro. Nai-ya) was born in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1973 into a family of artists. Her creative genes are inherited from her grandfather Jørn Utzon, a Danish architect most notable for designing the iconic Sydney Opera House in Australia. Her mother, Lin Utzon, is an eminent Danish artist and her father is acclaimed Australian architect, Alex Popov.
Having grown up in a highly creative family, support and encouragement was plentiful. Her childhood years in Denmark have always been an important source of inspiration for her work, as have the years she spent in Australia, where she studied drawing, painting and etching at the Julian Ashton Art School. After moving to England, Utzon Popov continued her formal artistic training at the University of Westminster (2002) School of Media Arts and Design.
Innately influenced by the wealth of nature around her during her younger years, Naja's style embraces encounters with the environment which have been translated into a collection of sculptures, glassware and hand woven rugs. She has created gravity-defying clay sculptures for the Rosendahl corporate headquarters in Copenhagen and a design for a presentation sculpture was commissioned by the Institute of Architects in Barcelona. A monumental outdoor sculpture entitled 'Gathering', which rises from the ground like ancient columns formed from Welsh slate, was commissioned for the corporate collection of the Danish organisation, Humana. Bespoke retail design projects include an exquisite line of glassware for Zone, sushi dinner service for UK sushi chain Feng Sushi and two exclusive ranges of high quality floor rugs commissioned by specialist retailer, Forty Thieves in London. She has launched her own exquisite rug ranges at the prestigious Maison et Objet in Paris, and ICFF in New York, as well as selected high end furniture stores. Naja works directly with architects and interior designers to create unique and site specific artworks and rugs.
Throughout her career, Naja has produced a collection of work which is tapped directly from the simplicity of nature. Skilled craftsmanship is the pillar of all her design work and using considered materials is essential to all her sculptural concepts.
