“Concrete Collection” is a new range of work by Matali Crasset for French company Concrete by LCDA, which can be seen at Interieur 2012 in Belgium.
Wanting to explore and experiment with the strength, characteristics and possibilities of concrete as a material for furniture design, Crasset created a table, bookshelf and lamp.
Each piece in the collection demonstrates Crasset’s unique craftsmanship, resulting in finished pieces that appear to be light in weight, despite the true bulk of the material.
The aim is to tame concrete so that it will be better incorporated into the heart of our daily life, says Crasset.
The table has been cast from a wooden mould and reinterpreted in solid concrete, while revealing traces of the wood grain. The top of the ten-seater table has been coated with 10 mm of high-performance, fibre-reinforced concrete, though it weighs far less than a traditional structure.
Referencing the "listening ears" still found in coastal England, Crasset’s concrete lamp is made from ultra high-performance raw concrete.
The bookshelf, making up the third item in the collection, offers an abstract visual of a vertebrae. This look is achieved by putting together various single-piece shapes to create the overall structure. The bookshelf, too, is light in weight yet it manages to maintain a weighty look.
