José Lévy creates Japanese tatami furniture for Daiken

Launched at Maison et Objet, French designer José Lévy has taken traditional rice straw tatami and created a new selection of furniture for Japanese manufacturers Daiken (Image credit: press)

In the wide spectrum of innovative materials available to designers, it's the challenging ones that create the most intrigue. For a new cross-cultural collaboration, French designer José Lévy has taken traditional rice straw tatami and created a new selection of furniture for Japanese manufacturers Daiken.

Launched at Maison et Objet, the sensual collection is titled ‘Moving Tatamis’ and embraces the material’s heritage as traditional Japanese flooring. Channelling the washitsu style, the range of seating, side tables and storage merges organic hues and a panelled aesthetic.

Being the first ever furniture collection to be made out of the material meant some tweaking. The structures were woven from traditional Japanese washi paper instead of straw to solidify and add resistance to the material, while retaining the desirable lightweight quality.

Levy’s strong connection to Japan and its materials was fostered from a young age. ‘It was my first experience of anything exotic of some other place, of the "unusual yet beautiful",' he says. ‘All these objects fascinated me. They were very important in my relationship with anything foreign, beautiful, dreams and distinction.’ Not only do the soft curls that mark the edges of the table and bench reflect an Asian design sensibility, the additional materials are also reminiscent of the region. Precious woods, lacquer and light woods merge with tatami to create simple, warm furniture; contemporary minimalist silhouettes standing on slim short legs.

Following Maison et Objet, the ‘Moving Tatamis’ will be available to purchase from Paris' Joyce Gallery.

The sensual collection is titled &lsquo;Moving Tatamis&rsquo; and embraces the material&rsquo;s heritage as a flooring found in various Japanese homes — The sensual collection is titled ‘Moving Tatamis’ and embraces the material’s heritage as a flooring found in various Japanese homes

Channelling the washitsu style, the range of seating, side tables and storage merge organic hues and a panelled aesthetic

Precious woods, lacquer and light woods merge with tatami to create a simple, warm furniture, with contemporary injections

L&eacute;vy&rsquo;s strong connection to Japan and its materials was fostered from a young age. &lsquo;It was my first experience of anything exotic of some other place, of the &quot;unusual yet beautiful&quot;' — Lévy’s strong connection to Japan and its materials was fostered from a young age. ‘It was my first experience of anything exotic of some other place, of the "unusual yet beautiful"'

INFORMATION

For more information, visit Daiken’s ’Moving Tatami’ website

Sujata Burman is a writer and editor based in London, specialising in design and culture. She was Digital Design Editor at Wallpaper* before moving to her current role of Head of Content at London Design Festival and London Design Biennale where she is expanding the content offering of the showcases. Over the past decade, Sujata has written for global design and culture publications, and has been a speaker, moderator and judge for institutions and brands including RIBA, D&AD, Design Museum and Design Miami/. In 2019, she co-authored her first book, An Opinionated Guide to London Architecture, published by Hoxton Mini Press, which was driven by her aim to make the fields of design and architecture accessible to wider audiences.