NO WASTE

OUR MATERIAL CHOICES WHEN IT COMES TO THE DESIGN OF SPACES AND OBJECTS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER. AS OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE COMPARABLE EFFECTS OF USING DIFFERENT RAW MATERIALS ON THE PLANET CONTINUES TO DEVELOP, DESIGNERS ARE INCREASINGLY UTILISING RECYCLED AND ‘WASTE’ MATERIALS IN A BID TO CREATE MORE SUSTAINABLE, CIRCULAR-MINDED PRODUCTS.

PLANKTON BY JULIA KOERNER, 3D PRINTED LIGHTS EXHIBTIED IN THE CLOSING THE LOOP EXHIBITION BY THE SOLARIS COMMUNITY / EGGSHELL

TABLE, YELLOWDOT / MOON STOOL, WILD STUDIO

This principle was explored in-depth throughout Stockholm Furniture Fair and across the broader Design Week, as studios and manufacturers investigated what material choices we can start to make now, as an industry, in order to better nurture and protect the planet we share.

The exploration into using ‘unwanted’ waste material and off-cuts was a big focus, with brands adopting a circular approach as their principal means of production. Danish brand Wild Studio showed their furniture collection made from 100% recycled plastic, while NCP Furniture exhibited their environmental chair S-1500: produced by worn out nets, ropes and pipes supplied by local fish farming companies, the chair has one of the lowest carbon footprints on the market.

Finnish designer Riku Taneli Toivonen’s Leppänen dining table made of rotten timber celebrated the natural imperfections and patterns in each unique piece of wood.

The theme of circularity ran through discussions during the event: in a talk organised by Emma Olbers’ as an extension of her exhibition ‘Now or Never’ sustainable design experts discussed ‘The Value of Waste’, delving into the advantages of recycled materials and their accessibility for manufacturers.

The guest exhibition

‘Closing the Loop’ by Solaris Community, in collaboration with Materialbiblioteket, put a spotlight on the vast amount of plastic ending up in oceans every year. The exhibition showcased several projects, from art, lighting, and fashion, highlighting numerous ways waste materials can be reused.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:

S-1500 CHAIR, NCP FURNITURE / LEPPÄNEN DINING TABLE, RIKU

TANELI TOIVONEN / KELP CHAIR, INTERSTING TIMES GANG