Most tables for the contract market, whereas sturdy, are little greater than utilitarian items with commonplace finishes. Now Studio TK, in partnership with UK-based firm Modus, introduces a enjoyable trio, Modus Artwork, Arne, and Abe occasional tables crafted from 100% recycled cork.
The tables had been designed by Michael Sodeau, who first explored the pure materials when he was engaged on a resort challenge in Sagres, Portugal. Stunned by its particular properties, Sodeau quickly realized that cork might improve items made for office settings. “Cork isn’t generally utilized in contract workplace furnishings,” he says. “I embraced its bulkier nature by creating merchandise that commemorate roundness.”
Cork is a renewable useful resource, harvested from the outer bark of the Mediterranean cork oak tree with out inflicting hurt – a profit for specifiers who need extra sustainable choices. The tables are produced with waste supplies left over from the manufacturing of wine bottle corks.
In contrast to hardwood timbers, which might solely be machined, cork is versatile and will be compressed into numerous shapes, which provides it a dynamic high quality. Sodeau determined to focus on this aspect by together with openings within the furnishings to focus on its texture and imperfections.
In April, Studio TK launched Bob, a cork stool additionally designed by Sodeau. He tried totally different shapes, and ultimately created a personality from the cork with two indents harking back to eyes, which additionally permits anybody to simply choose the piece up and transfer it anyplace. The stool, and now all the tables, share comparable silhouettes and features however have distinct design personalities.
Artwork is the smallest of the three tables, and options an angled cutout that’s ideally suited for a ebook, papers, or small gadgets. The medium-sized Abe has a decrease shelf that runs round its total perimeter. The most important piece, Arne, showcases a concentric cutout on the highest that’s the good house for magazines.
Artwork, Arne, and Abe can all be grouped collectively, or just positioned subsequent to sofas or bigger tables. This triad enhances a variety of palettes and textiles, and might improve any inside, whether or not up to date or conventional. Cork is especially suited to company areas as a result of it’s water-repellent, simple to scrub, and supplies sound insulation. On the finish of their lifecycle the tables will be mechanically recycled into new objects, or composted to counterpoint the soil.
For Sodeau, despite the fact that the tables are compact, they’re as distinctive because the people who use them on daily basis. “I like how they every have impartial, sculptural, and expressive types,” he notes.
For extra info on Modus Artwork, Arne, and Abe occasional tables, go to studiotk.com.
Pictures courtesy of Studio TK.
