As part of the Dezeen x The Mindcraft Project 2022 collaboration, Danish designer Anne Brandhøj has created a chair that explores the line between "functional sculpture and sculptural furnishing".

Anne Brandhøj's chair named Bend to Caress Me is presented as part of The Mindcraft Project digital exhibition and includes a tactile seat made from two simple interlocking wooden volumes.

The piece encourages users to interact with it by presenting two interlinked shapes made from subtly contrasting materials – a raw Danish cherry wood back, which retains its natural knots and cracks, in contrast with the smooth ash veneer seat slotted onto it.

"These natural markings highlight the organic nature of timber and are also used a reminder of the amount of beautiful wood that is not seen as suitable for industry," said Brandhøj.

The crack and knot in the back panel of the chair and the smoothed grain of the wood in the seat become the piece's decoration, as well as the contrast between the straight and curved elements.

"Bend to Caress Me was designed and constructed in order to bring to attention the disparities of raw, felled timber and the finished wood used within our furniture and homes," Brandhøj continued. "It underlies the craftsmanship involved in combining raw and machined elements."

The chair is part of larger collection entitled Touch and Relate by Anne Brandhøj, who creates furniture and sculptures both independently and alongside fellow designer Eva Fly at their newly founded design studio called Bly Studio.

Dezeen x The Mindcraft Project 2022

Dezeen x The Mindcraft Project 2022 is a partnership between Dezeen and Copenhagen Design Agency. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.