A bridge of wood

Ariake, which translates as the “morning moon”, stands for the beginning of the new day and symbolizes the merger of furniture maker Legnatec and Hirata Chair from Saga in Japan. In their endeavor to combine a truly broad basis of knowledge and craftsmanship in a single piece, the founders of the new Ariake brand have brought on board international designers such as Norm Architects, StudioMK27, Anderssen & Voll, Gabriel Tan and Staffan Holm for their first collection – they met up on the Japanese isle of Kyushu to design ergonomic wooden furniture together. What are now no less than 30 different minimalist designs all reference the spiritual culture of the country. The items in the collection are rounded out by leather, paper and fabrics and are so discrete as to enable each and every element to be placed in a different cultural context without there being any disharmony. On the occasion of the Stockholm Design Week at the beginning of this year, Ariake for the first time presented its collection outside Asia – in an exhibition entitled “A quiet reflexion”. (am)