Maison&Objet 2016: British designer Bethan Gray has created a collection of tables with marble tops wrapped in bands of brass (+ slideshow).
The Band tables are made from polished and lacquered marbles in a range of colours, including green, white, pink and black. The furniture is available with single colour tabletops, or as two-tone versions featuring contrasting marble halves.
The tables are wrapped in a brushed brass rim, and their tripod-style legs also appear to have been dipped in the metal. The collection includes circular tables in various heights, as well as an oblong version, and have either black or white painted legs.
"Our new Band collection brings the natural beauty of coloured marble together with warm brushed brass to create a pairing of materials that elegantly enhance each other," said the designer, who has previously created furniture and tableware influenced by Islamic patterns.
"The use of two strikingly contrasting marbles enhances the depth of colour and updates a traditional material to create an elegant and timeless look," she added.
"I hope that the combination of materials and shapes has created a warm contemporary and timeless range."
The shapes of the Band tables are echoed in Gray's Stud collection, which use similar brass elements in the legs, and includes leather tabletops that repeat the colours of the marble.
The designer previously experimented with contrasting marble colours for a monochrome patterned tableware collection.
The material is experiencing a resurgence in furniture design. It was recently used for a side table that included phallic legs, and paired with bronze for a series of tables that resemble maps seen from above.
Marble has also been used to form vases by Zaha Hadid, candle holders by Peca and patchwork tables by Menu.
The Band collection was shown at this year's Maison&Object trade fair, which took place at Paris' Nord Villepinte exhibition centre from 22 to 26 January 2016.