Dezeen Magazine

Roee Magdassi abstracts animal forms to create furniture trio

Israeli designer Roee Magdassi has abstracted the shapes of different animals and combined them to influence the forms of three furniture pieces (+ slideshow).

Tre by Roee Magdassi

Roee Magdassi explored the morphology of animals to form his Tre collection, which includes an armchair, a side table and a lamp that can be used as separate pieces or together as a "reading environment".

"I applied a process of abstraction and reduction of animal figures, until they almost vanished, leaving only the being, expressed by a few strokes or a single colour stain," Magdassi told Dezeen. "I worked simultaneously on tall and thin, large and fat, and skinny animals."

Tre by Roee Magdassi

The armchair features an oversized backrest, influenced by the bulky upper bodies of bears and gorillas.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

Its solid oak frame is upholstered and decorated with two laser-cut, sand-blasted and spray-painted stainless steel buttons.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

The reading lamp references the slender limbs of giraffes, flamingos and ostriches. An aluminium stem was chosen for its conductive properties, which enable touch dimming and provide an effective heat sink for the small LED bulb.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

The aluminium bars are cut and welded together, while the tilting base is made from solid oak to provide a visual link with the chair and table.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

Apart from the small pink tray, the surface of the side table is made from one piece of solid oak cut using computer numerically controlled (CNC) milling.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

The uneven underside of the table and a small tray integrated into the top are painted pink, while three delicate angled legs supporting the table are shaped to resemble insects.

Tre by Roee Magdassi

"I tried to abstract different animal profiles in order to make the three pieces different from each other," said Magdassi.

Tre by Roee Magdassi
Roee Magdassi's abstracted animal diagrams

"I wanted all three pieces to stand out separately, but more than that, to make an harmonious space," the designer continued. "A reading environment is a quiet, intimate space, where the user can escape the real world and to dive in the imaginary world."

For more furniture based on animals, see a series of stools with fabric cushions shaped like pigs, elephants and donkeys, and a dining table with wooden legs carved to look like a stags' horns.