Thomas Schnur exhibits furniture pieces based on objects found in the street
Beijing Design Week 2016: German designer Thomas Schnur presents six pieces of furniture adapted from common objects like traffic cones and metal barriers for an exhibition in Beijing (+ slideshow).
Intended to celebrate everyday objects, The Fragments of the Ordinary exhibition features items including a black metal room divider, stackable felt side tables and a log-cabin-style chair.
"The objects are reflecting certain ideas – they transfer daily life situations into pieces of furniture," explained Schnur.
"It is important to me that, despite their cross-references, the products, which are often created from familiar fragments, are able to develop the greatest possible degree of autonomy."
"In this way, they allow for associations but, beyond this, develop their own potential for becoming autonomous products," he said.
The exhibition features a room divider with a simple black metal frame, developed as an interpretation of metal traffic barriers.. A sheet of felt can be used to cover the structure for more privacy and better sound absorption.
The triangular Felt stool is designed to be stacked, resembling street traffic cones. Schnur chose the material as it is both lightweight and sound-absorbing.
The Forest chair, which is set against a backdrop of greenery, is made from chestnut wood. A stack of cylindrical pieces of wood form the base, referencing the design of seating in forests and villages that are crafted out of tree trunks.
The Rubber Table, which is a development of Schnur's previous lamp designs, is bendy when picked up. But its plug-like feet make it sturdy when placed down.
Also on display is a miniature version of the Holzbank bench, as well as a pair of brick side tables, which feature a wooden top and bottom.
One of the tables is completely yellow, while the other has a yellow top and base, white bricks and grey joints.
Schnur works from a studio in Cologne. He often works with simple materials for his projects, with other recent examples including a gridded storage system than can be used to display plants, hang up clothes or as a framework for shelves.
The Fragments of the Ordinary exhibition is located at No 27, Neiwubu Street, Dongcheng District. It is taking place as part of the German Design Hub during this year's Beijing Design Week, which runs from 23 September to 7 October 2016.
Photography is by Alexander Böhle.