American designer Vincent Pocsik has created a series of intricate artworks from wood and bronze that could act as furniture.
Vincent Pocsik created the furniture pieces, named On The Meridian, as part of an ongoing exploration into the relationship between traditional furniture design and avant-garde art.
Although the pieces are made of natural materials, Pocsik attempts to push material so far that it no longer seems possible that it can be natural.
"With wood for instance, I am always trying to hide it by pushing it into new forms and finishes that haven't been seen. I am pushing how it's viewed," explained Pocsik to Dezeen.
In order to achieve this Pocsik uses a mix of digital fabrication and hand working. First Pocsik drew the pieces then 3D modelled them. The pieces are cut into a rough form using a computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine to create a rough form and then finished by hand.
"It seems to me that I can never really achieve the feel of something close to my original sketches without working it by hand after the digital fabrication techniques," said Pocsik.
The designer plays with the manipulating the appearance of each material by hand, painting stone to look like bronze and giving the wooden pieces a textured appearance that disguise it.
His intention was to add a layer of ambiguity to each piece's materiality.
This ambiguity in the material reflects the larger theme in Pocsik's work: the investigation into the vagueness in definition that separates form from function in art and design. He is interested in how his work is perceived.
"I think of the function being in cohorts with the pure geometry in each piece is the art," said Pocsik.
"I think if a child was to see the chair they would sit in it. Children are probably the best judge for something like this. Part of the vagueness of this is what the pieces are about though."
On The Meridian was featured in an exhibition titled Works Of Sculpture 33 at FF-1051 Gallery in Los Angeles, curated by owner and founder Holly Purcell. The work was inspired during the artist's recent residency with Long Ago, Far Away in Omaha, Nebraska.
Earlier this year Chilean-born artist Sebastian Errazuriz took inspiration from ancient masterpieces to create his series Functional Sculptures, a collection of furniture and accessories that included a penis paperweight and statues that double as seats.