With its art-inflected approach to design and a spacious workshop in Brooklyn at its disposal, the young design studio Wintercheck Factory has steadily amassed a growing collection of furniture that brings together both supernormal and unconventional materials. Its latest endeavor, 'Collection 400', unexpectedly taps into the unique texture of flexible polyurethane rubber, which has been incorporated into seating, tables and lamps for an effect that is simultaneously familiar and foreign.
‘Increasingly, we’ve been trying to move away from materials that might be considered more traditional,’ says founder Kristen Wintercheck. ‘We decided it would make more sense to develop a variation of the material in-house. During the sourcing and testing period, we found ourselves browsing the rubber section, since they’re typically sold by the same type of store.
'We especially liked this polyurethane rubber that looked and felt like medical tubing, and we started to think about how we could use it as a building material. Every time we showed one of the early rubber samples to someone, their reaction was either amazed or disgusted. It was clear that this material was compelling on a different level.’
Capitalising on the malleable nature of the rubber, 'Collection 400' enabled the studio to explore new forms. The '401 Chair' uses the rubber as a seat cushion for the low-slung chair, made from yellow pine. On the other end of the spectrum, the '403 Floor Lamp' is fully encased in the semi-translucent industrial material and emanates an amber glow when turned on. The '402 Side Table' follows in a similar vein and is cast from a single piece of rubber.
‘We’ve always leaned toward making understated designs that employ an industrial component, but this collection is definitely a leap forward,’ Wintercheck concludes. ‘Our intent is to decontextualise both materials: separating the rubber from its industrial uses, and using wood to construct forms that reject the traditional “maker” look and label. Ultimately, we want to make objects that straddle the line between furniture and sculpture.’
‘We’ve always leaned toward making understated designs that employ an industrial component,’ says founder Kristen Wintercheck. Pictured: the ’403 Floor Lamp’, that emanates an amber glow when switched on
The ’403 Floor Lamp’ is fully encased in the semi-translucent industrial material
The ’402 Side Table’ follows in a similar vein and is cast from a single piece of rubber
‘Our intent is to decontextualise both materials: separating the rubber from its industrial uses, and using wood to construct forms that reject the traditional "maker" look and label,’ Wintercheck continues. Pictured: the ’405 Lamp Table’
The ’404 Bench’ plays with ideas of weight and proportion. The yellow pine form gives rise to an 18lb rubber cushion, supported by a recessed panel
INFORMATION
For more information, visit Wintercheck Factory’s website
ADDRESS
Wintercheck Factory
1241 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11216
-
São Paulo Biennial 2023: activism, repressed cultures and South America’s art history under the lensThe 35th São Paulo Biennial considers ‘Choreographies of the Impossible’ as the theme. Amah-Rose Abrams reports on what to see
-
Jacqueline Rabun’s sculptural jewellery design goes on show in London
‘Jacqueline Rabun: A Retrospective’ opens at London’s Carpenters Workshop Gallery
-
Tokujin Yoshioka’s flaming glass cauldron sets Tokyo alight
Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka plays with fire with an exhibition of glass torches and cauldrons, on view at 21_21 Design Sight Gallery 3 in Tokyo (until 5 November 2023)
-
Blue Green Works's lighting champions a new aesthetic in American design
Manhattan-based design studio Blue Green Works fuses sensuality and masculinity to create mellow, mood-enhancing lighting with visual impact
-
Blue Green Works introduces alluring new lighting collection
Inspired by iconography, American design studio Blue Green Works introduces five new lighting ranges
-
First look inside Centurion New York by Yabu Pushelberg
Centurion New York is an expansive new space for American Express’ ‘black card’ members. Its interior designers Yabu Pushelberg give us a tour
-
Exclusive peek at artfully curated home in Jean Nouvel’s 53 West 53
RR Interiors' latest furnishing project – 61A at 53 West 53 – highlights art, architecture and city views inside Jean Nouvel's monumental New York skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan
-
Sculptural ceramic lamps from Brooklyn’s In Common With and Danny Kaplan
‘Terra’, a new collection of ceramic lamps featuring tactile glazes, puts Brooklyn studio In Common With and ceramicist Danny Kaplan in the spotlight
-
Sight Unseen launches furniture line with Bestcase
Editorial platform Sight Unseen worked with sheet metal specialist Bestcase to launch a collection of 1970s-inspired furniture in collaboration with Home Studios, Studio Anansi and Thévoz-Choquet
-
Roll & Hill and Post Company's lighting designs in Inness are inspired by Georgian bell jars
Brooklyn-based studio Post Company created a new lighting collection for Roll & Hill, inspired by bell jar lanterns and conceived for country refuge Inness
-
Trnk refines its namesake furniture collection to spotlight creatives of colour
The reinvigorated Trnk Collection is curated by founder Tariq Dixon and draws from its creative community, including pieces by Studio Anansi, Michael K Chen and Farrah Sit
