A very happy new week to you. Today I’m rounding up some of my favourite furniture finds that I’ve discovered recently. From traditional Danish chairs to new takes on classics and more contemporary offerings, all these simple furniture designs share a focus on the honesty of materials and a dedication to expert craftsmanship.
F chair by Rasmus Bækkel Fex for Brdr. Krüger
Danish furniture artist and designer Rasmus Bækkel Fex has created a contemporary take on the traditional Shaker chair for design company Brdr. Krüger. Inspired by the classic design’s simplicity, honesty and craftsmanship, the F chair is a refined interpretation, made of a minimal wooden frame and updated with a durable polyester webbed seat.
The chair, as with all of the brand’s furniture, is carefully hand-crafted at its family-run workshop just outside Copenhagen. The seat is hand-woven to give it a bespoke geometrical pattern that catches the light, while the back rest is gently curved for comfort. The simple, rectangular frame, with its multiple slender rungs, give the F chair a clean, contemporary expression. The black version, seen below, is particularly striking.
Rasmus Bækkel Fex says: ‘The F chair is a celebration of old crafts. It is born from innumerable prototypes and hands-on work at Brdr. Krüger’s workshop, where we fine-tuned the simple construction to gain the right expression and feel.’
The F chair is available in black stained beech and oiled oak, priced at £395.
Piper Collection by DesignByThem
The new Piper range, designed by GibsonKarlo, is a lightweight series of chairs, bar stools and tables created for Australian design brand DesignByThem. The collection is made of stainless steel with a powder-coated finish and is suitable for both inside and out. The Piper Chairs and Bar Stools are available with fixed leather and thin fabric seat pads, and with or without armrests. The curved backrest and wire-frame seat can be interchanged with various colours and upholstery finishes, resulting in a range that’s fun and versatile.
‘We wanted to create an indoor looking outdoor chair,’ says designer Nicholas Karlovasitis. ‘The contrasting colours accentuate the design further, the same way that windows and architraves are highlighted in buildings. It serves to frame the design,’ adds Sarah Gibson.
Available in October.
Photography: Pete Daly
New from &tradition
&tradition has introduced a new high bak version of the Cloud Sofa designed by Italian born, Sweden-based designer Luca Nichetto. The pouffy, feather- and foam-filled cushions and upholstered, foam-wrapped plywood shell have a cosy, cocooning effect. The slender steel legs, available in black, chrome or bronze, emphasise the feeling of lightness.
‘When you are floating on a cloud, you are in your own world,’ explains Nichetto. ‘With the high-back version of the sofa, you feel comfy, free and able to focus. Even the acoustics are more intimate. It is like having your own cloud up in the sky. It is a concept – but it is real. A private space that you can share with others.’
&tradition has also introduced Isole, a modular sofa designed by Oki Sato of Tokyo-based studio Nendo and Luca Nichetto. Working from two different corners of the world, Sato and Nichetto were inspired by the concept of Tanka, a traditional type of Japanese poetry, where one person starts the poem and the other person finishes it.
‘I was thinking of soft, organic forms like pebbles, stones, drops of water, islands,’ explains Sato. ‘But I had no idea how they could connect and become furniture. I did a sketch, took a photo with my iPhone and sent it to Luca.’
‘I am from Venice so I know about islands,’ says Nichetto.’When I saw the rst sketch I realized that these islands needed bridges. So I designed the armature as a bridge to connect the islands into individual seats, and each seat into a modular sofa.’
‘Isole’ means islands in Italian. The sofa, made from a powder coated steel seat and backrest with soft moulded foam cushions, can be configured in a variety of versions, with or without arm cushions. A round, square or rectangular side table can also be integrated into the design.
Furniture by Malte Gormsen and interiors by Snøhetta at Barr, Copenhagen
Architecture and design practice Snøhetta has designed the interiors and visual identity for a new restaurant for the famous noma restaurant group in Copenhagen. Developed with chefs Thorsten Schmidt and René Redzepi, Barr (meaning ‘barley’ in old Norse) is a casual restaurant inspired by the food and culture of the North Sea region. Dishes include classic Danish meatballs, schnitzel and hot-smoked salmon, served alongside craft beers and aquavits.
Housed in noma’s former home on the waterfront, the interior fuses old and new. The original stone walls of the listed building are left exposed and complemented with warm, locally-sourced oak and rich leather. The old wooden ceiling beams and columns give a rustic feel, while new wooden planks feature little brass details.
The furniture, including the chairs with their signature semi-circular backs, was created by Malte Gormsen using traditional Danish carpentry techniques. The subtle relief pattern of the ceiling and wall panels are inspired by the microscopic view of barley.
images: © Line Klein
Covent Chair by New Works
Danish design brand New Works has released its Covent chair in five upholstered versions. Designed by ARDE, the Covent is a simple chair inspired by the geometry of Mondrian’s work. An upholstered shell, using the Floyd and Umami fabrics by Kvadrat, sits on a slim frame that makes the chair appear to float. The chair’s gently curved back embraces the body and provides a welcoming seat.
The Covent Chair is priced at €590.
So what do you think, do any of these catch your eye?
Images courtesy of respective brands, unless otherwise specified
