This furniture range is a hybrid between Claudio’s past design work, the use of contemporary materials and the local and traditional decorative codes of today. What triggered the pure, graphic design of the chairs and table was a visit to an ancient garden in the town of Suzhou, named the Venice of the East. The chairs drew their inspiration from the graphics on Chinese doors, screens, windows and from a round door one goes through to get from one part of the garden to another. These mysterious and traditional codes along with their pure and minimalist lines, were instrumental in highlighting the essence of each component. The chairs and table are made of a composition of mineral powders and resin and bright coloured cushions, to give a lighter, fresher and more contemporary interpretation of this type of furniture which is traditionally made of dark wood. The chairs are available in two different heights, where the higher versions, when placed back to back, give the impression of a door. These chairs are almost architectonic whereby the entire set could also be used for a tea ceremony as well as just high bar seating. 

The intention is to reinterpret the extremely pure Chinese graphics seen at the gardens into a physical form while resembling an ancient alphabet. An alphabet that one would no longer know how to decipher but that nonetheless reveals the essence of its message by its contemplation: harmony, orderliness and elegance. The straight, vertical backs are drawn like a link between earth and sky, while the network of straight lines criss-cross graciously creating soft and theatrical curves mimicking a cocoon.

Collection composed of 3 pieces: 

High Sofa 200 x 80 x 71 cm

Medium Sofa 30 x 80 x 71 cm

Low table 78 x 101 x 35 cm

Limited edition of 8 + 2AP.

China, 2012.

Photo© Sui