We tend to be of the opinion that certain classics should be left alone. The wheel needs no reinvention, after all. But every now and then we eat our words when a canny collaboration emerges that makes us look anew at something we thought we already knew, inside out and upside down. Such is the case with the surprising, delightful collaboration between Swiss modular furniture brand USM and the London-based design practice Buchanan Studio. ‘Tessellate’ is a collection of 11 new and reimagined variations on the legendary Haller system. And it is very interesting indeed.
‘The Cube’ side table
Haller was launched in 1963, and Buchanan Studio was founded in 2018 by partners Charlotte and Angus Buchanan. This is the first time USM has worked with a UK-based studio, and it’s the first collaboration that Buchanan Studio has embarked upon too.
Charmingly, the first proper piece of furniture the pair bought together was a USM credenza: ‘We wanted something real and grown-up,’ Charlotte says. ‘It has followed us around ever since and, because we’ve really lived with it, we know it well and so we’ve used USM in all our projects. We’ve been asked to partner with brands before but we felt it was right to collaborate for the first time proactively, and so we aimed high and approached our dream client. We fully expected them to laugh in our faces, but to our delight they were extremely receptive.’
‘BS Pink and Pure White’ coffee table
Clever USM for giving Buchanan the keys to their cabinets, because what they’ve conjured up with ‘Tessellate’ is eminently respectful to the modern Swiss strictness so adored, but with a warmth and whimsy that feels fresh and exciting. Playful, perhaps. For many, USM belongs in commercial settings; indeed, Angus first fell in love with it whilst working as a teenager for Mario Testino, whose offices were, of course, lined with Haller. ‘Tessellate’ takes Haller into the domestic realm. What we really love here is that the collection celebrates the definitive qualities of the original design, turning the utilitarian background-ness of the system into unapologetic foreground furniture. Humanity has briefly reasserted authority over the machine. William Morris would be applauding.
‘The Bench’ and ‘The Stool’ with ‘Ticking Rose’ upholstery
‘We have beefed up some aspects to make them chunkier,’ Angus explains, pointing to the credenza. ‘We’ve consciously played with inefficiency in a system that everyone knows and loves for its efficiency, and this process brings a different beauty to pieces within the collection.’
It says something that one of the subtler interventions is the introduction of Buchanan Studio’s signature pink to the USM palette. Some of our favourite pieces are the marble-topped coffee tables, and the bench upholstered in Buchanan’s ‘Ticking Rose’ fabric. And the cocktail cart has its own flavour of genius, too.
‘The Kiss’ side table with marble surfaces
It would be easy to write-off these moves as gimmicky stylistic flourishes, but that misses the point entirely. What’s at play here is a more interesting unbuttoning of modernism’s clinical functionalism, which over time has become a bland, stylistic approximation of the original doctrine. We awarded Formafantasma’s ‘La Casa Dentro’ show at ICA Milano in our recent Wallpaper* Design Awards issue for just this reason. We’re beginning to reclaim and reappraise the principles of modernism back into something of rigour and substance, fit for today’s modernity and new audiences with different values. By which we mean personality, warmth, humanity, humour, kitsch-ness, even. ‘Tessellate’ is part of this movement. And we are very much here for it.
The collection will be available to buy exclusively through Buchanan Studio’s online shop from 8 May 2025, as well as by appointment from their London showroom. An edit of the collection will be available to buy from USM, too.
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