Milan 2014: Dutch studio Scholten & Baijings has designed a series of marble tables decorated with engraved geometric patterns that contrast with the natural veined surface of the stone.
Scholten & Baijings created the Solid Patterns series for Italian marble producer Luce di Carrara and used different types of marble from the company's quarry in Tuscany to produce five unique pieces.
"The collection is inspired by the uniqueness of marble quarried from the depths of the Apuan Alps," said the designers. "Designing was all about expressing the various characteristics of the marble in a single form, merging mass, colour, unique line patterns and circular shapes."
Thin table tops with irregular rounded edges combine with bases shaped as columns, truncated cones, faceted blocks or fluid curving forms.
In some cases, Scholten & Baijings applied its signature geometric patterns to the table tops, while other examples feature lines engraved into the bases.
"Adding grid patterns to the designs has created a contemporary look that enhances the contrast between the graphics and the crystalline marble patterns," the designers added.
The largest table in the series can be used as a dining or conference table. It features a base made from a single block of white-beige marble, embellished with a subtle pattern of vertical lines.
Two low coffee tables, one produced from brown-beige Lericy marble and another from a pink-hued stone, feature criss-crossing diagonal lines covering their top surfaces.
One of two taller tables for seating three to four people has a base made from a hollowed-out block of grey marble with a pattern of vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines. A similar pattern applied to the other table's base emphasises the accuracy of its faceted form.
The collection was presented at Spazio Rossana Orlandi in Milan during last week's Salone Internazionale del Mobile.
Photography is by Scheltens & Abbenes.