Wanting tame concrete as a means finding a way in which it could be better incorporated into our daily lives, Matali Crasset explored the strengths, characteristics and possibilities of the industrial material which has resulted in the creation of a series of furniture and lighting objects. The sculptural works which include a table, bookshelf and lamp, have been developed for french company concrete by LCDA and exercise a high-level of craftsmanship with a sensitive approach which is characteristic of the french designers work.

The archetypal table has been interpreted by Crasset as a solid concrete form which picks-up traces of the grain of the wooden mould from which it is cast. Accommodating up to ten persons, the top is made from a honeycomb rigid core coated with 10mm of high-performance fibre-reinforced concrete thanks to an exclusive moulding system – lightweight concrete – which offers a weight which is four times less than a traditional structure.

The lamp which Crasset has conceived for the collection formally refers to the listening ears found in Folkestone, England – the function of the original monolithic objects was reinforced concrete was to listen to the sky. The disc-like lamp is made from ultra high-performance raw concrete. A PCB (printed circuitboard) is made of 36 0.5W LEDS powered by 24V of direct currents. A white light spectrum moulded acrylic sheet offers diffusion strength and eco-efficient solution weighing 18kg.

The bookshelf is comprised of common single-piece shapes which together offer an abstract visual of a vertebrae. The overall design, despite the weightiness of the material from which it is made, seems light, retaining a particular momentum and dynamism. Cast from ductal, a smooth ultra-high-performance concrete, color may be obtained by incorporating natural pigments into the concrete.

All images © Simon Bouisson