Civil Engineering Materials as Designer Furniture? The Infinite Possibilities of the “Concrete Canvas

Concrete Canvas” is a membrane that can form a concrete surface simply by pouring water on it. Concrete canvas, an advanced civil engineering material that has been used mainly for riverbank protection, is now attracting attention as a completely new design in the world of interior design. We will introduce the infinite possibilities of concrete canvas, which is also used as designer furniture.

What is a concrete canvas?

太陽工業株式会社が提供するコンクリートキャンバスは、イギリスで開発された画期的な土木資材です。コンクリートと布地と遮水材で構成された厚さ5mm～13mmの薄い膜に水をかけるだけで、耐久性・水密性・耐火性に優れたコンクリート面をつくることができます。

従来のコンクリート工事は「時間がかかる」、「大型重機が必要」、「専門技術を持った作業員が必要」という課題を抱えており、特に災害復旧などの急を要する場面や、山間の護岸工事など狭小地における工事において長らく解決策が求められてきました。

そんな課題を解決した資材こそまさにコンクリートキャンバスであり、日本国内では特に台風被害対応などのシーンで迅速な補修を実現できるとして、すでに多くの行政で採用されています。

8°WORKS (Patchworks)" brings concrete canvas to life

8°WORKS (Patchworks), which has a studio in Hiratsuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture, creates completely new styles of interior design using concrete canvas.
8°WORKS is a group of artists, designers, architects, home builders, and other diverse talents, 8°WORKS is a group of creators who bring their skills and ideas together to create new value.

＞The official website of “8°WORKS” is here:

8°WORKS was the first in Japan to create interiors made of concrete canvas, which is rare in the world. Some of their works are introduced below.

CC Chair High/Low

Concrete canvas is as smooth as fabric. The CC chair series, which accentuates the supple beauty of concrete canvas, is soft on the outside and moderately hard when you sit on it, providing exquisite comfort calculated by our craftsmen. The concrete canvas, a civil engineering material, is given a new lease of life. The low chair type can be used as a stool to brighten up interior accessories.

CC Elephant

CC Elephant, an adorable elephant-shaped interior, is cut from a single concrete canvas. The canvas is hand-painted randomly by the artist, making every piece one-of-a-kind.

It is strong enough for children up to 5 years old to sit on like a chair.

＞Click here for more information about Concrete Canvas.

CC triple clock

Multiple clocks mark the time on a concrete canvas in the shape of a skateboard.

Chair from Milano Salone

Milano Salone is an international furniture fair held every April in Milan, Italy. The latest furniture, industrial design, interior design, and textile design from around the world are exhibited at the Fiera Milano, a fairground in the city of Rho, in the Milan metropolitan area. This work was selected for this prestigious exhibition. The strength of concrete allows for new structural ideas never seen before. Due to its excellent design, the coldness of concrete is not felt even when viewed up close.

Whorl Coffee Table" by Neal Aronowitz

8°WORKS (Patchworks) is not the only company that uses concrete canvas to create interiors.

Interior designer Neal Aronowitz has transformed concrete canvas, a civil engineering material, into designer furniture. His masterpiece is the “Whorl Coffee Table” shown above.

＞ Neal A ronowitz ‘s official website is here:

The Whorl Coffee Table was created by taking advantage of the characteristics of concrete canvas, The Whorl Coffee Table was created by taking advantage of the characteristics of concrete canvas, enabling a light and streamlined expression that overturns the heavy image that concrete has traditionally had.

More concrete canvas works by Neal Aronowitz

In addition to his masterpiece “Whorl Coffee Table,” Neal Aronowitz has created numerous concrete canvas furniture pieces. Some of his beautiful interior works, which can be viewed on his official website ( http://nealaronowitz.com/ ), are introduced here.

WHORL CONSOLE

The recipient of numerous awards, including the 2018 Interior Design Magazine Best Of Year Award and the 2017 Gray Award for Product Design, is this Whorl, which is part of the same WHORL series as the Coffee Table Console.

Ingo Maurer, a member of the 2017 Gray Awards jury, said, “An incredible achievement achieved! and praised it for its innovation in the interior design world.

ENSO TABLE

The Enso Table was inspired by Japanese calligraphy. In calligraphy, once you start writing, there is no redoing, and the moment is expressed in a way that can never be reproduced. The lightness and durability of concrete canvas is used to express this feeling in the form of furniture.

TODOS TABLE

The Todos Table was designed for a boutique hotel in Mexico. It was created to be light enough to be easily moved and durable enough to be used indoors or outdoors. Simple and elegant, it is available in two sizes: a side table and a coffee table.

summary

The superior functionality of concrete canvas has connected two worlds that would never ordinarily intersect: concrete construction and designer furniture. We at Taiyo Kogyo look forward to seeing what new applications will be found in the future.