Dezeen Magazine

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

Milan 2013: Belgian designer Maarten de Ceulaer presents the latest piece from his collection of furniture made from piled-up suitcases in Milan this week.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

On show at Milan's Nilufar Gallery, the newest addition to The Leather Collection by Maarten de Ceulaer is the Chest of Suitcases.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

The custom-made leather suitcases can be stacked up to make chests of drawers in various configurations, from tall and narrow towers to wide and low benches, arranged either in neat lines or chaotic, overlapping piles.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

The suitcases come in soft shades of green, blue and cream or alternatively in a monochrome palette of white, grey and black.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

De Ceulaer first explored the idea of stacking up suitcases to make furniture as part of his graduation project at Design Academy Eindhoven, before launching a desk and chest of drawers in Milan in 2009.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

The collection is on show until 14 April at Nilufar Gallery, Via Della Spiga 32, in the Brera district.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

Other projects by De Ceulaer we've featured on Dezeen include an installation of stripy leather furniture for fashion house Fendi and colourful lights shaped like laboratory flasks – see all design by Maarten de Ceulaer.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer

We'll be reporting on all the highlights from Milan this week, including Zaha Hadid's monochrome pendant lamps for Slamp and Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec's installation of cork carousels – see all news and products from Milan 2013 or take a look at our interactive map featuring the week's best exhibitions, parties and talks.

Chest of Suitcases by Maarten de Ceulaer