Bronze Furniture Design · 2025
Weaving Wood Cabinet
by ZKW Studio
- A' Design Award 2025 Bronze Winner in Furniture Design
- Awarded April 15, 2025
- CLIENT: ZKW Studio
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 12,937
- Verification code 9F74A1D588 · Verify this award
About Weaving Wood Cabinet
Weaving Wood Cabinet is a trapezoidal walnut cabinet featuring three side panels constructed from a woven walnut veneer textile. The weaving density varies across the surface, producing a subtle gradient in texture. This manual process, not achievable through mechanical means, combines the structural rigidity of wood with the pliability of textile. When exposed to sunlight, the surface casts layered shadows, and the alignment of the wood grain contributes to a consistent visual rhythm.
Weaving Wood Cabinet by Kewei Zhao represents a compelling synthesis of furniture design traditions and textile craft practices, situating itself within the broader contemporary movement toward material hybridity and cross-disciplinary making that has characterized progressive furniture design since the late twentieth century. The work engages directly with the legacy of Scandinavian modern furniture, particularly the material reductionism and structural clarity championed by designers working between the 1940s and 1960s, while simultaneously incorporating fiber arts in ways that recall both traditional craft practices and the contemporary studio craft revival that has brought textile techniques into dialogue with furniture making. The compositional achievement of the piece resides substantially in its asymmetrical organization, where the open left facade revealing internal shelving creates visual and functional transparency that balances against the chromatic intensity and textural complexity of the woven right panel, this left-right relationship establishing dynamic equilibrium between void and mass, restraint and expression, structural clarity and surface elaboration. The chromatic sophistication demonstrates particular accomplishment, the multicolor weaving introducing warm terracotta, rust, burgundy, peacock blue, and verdant green in horizontal bands that create rhythm and visual movement across what might otherwise remain a static planar surface, this color orchestration suggesting familiarity with textile traditions while achieving effects that enliven the surrounding neutral wood tones without overwhelming the composition's fundamental serenity. The technical facility evident in the joinery, the precision with which textile panels integrate flush within their timber frames, and the refinement of proportion across the cabinet body and supporting legs all point toward accomplished craftsmanship and thoughtful design development, the piece demonstrating how functional furniture can transcend mere utility to become a site of material investigation and aesthetic contemplation. Thematically, the work appears to explore the relationship between structure and ornament, between the rational geometric container and the organic complexity of woven fiber, perhaps meditating on how domestic objects might balance functional clarity with sensory richness, how utilitarian storage might become occasion for chromatic celebration, or how different craft traditions might inform and enhance one another when brought into thoughtful combination. The integration of textile panels suggests awareness of how screening, filtering, and semi-transparency can function architecturally, the woven elements simultaneously concealing and revealing interior contents while transforming flat closure planes into visually active surfaces that reward extended looking. One might observe how traditional craft techniques, when applied to contemporary furniture typologies, can refresh familiar forms while honoring material histories, the hand-woven quality of the textile elements creating intimate scale and human presence within an otherwise coolly rational structural system. The elevated stance of the cabinet, supported on slender tapered legs rather than resting directly on the ground, creates spatial transparency and visual lightness that references mid-century furniture conventions while allowing the piece to occupy space gracefully without dominating its environment, this design choice perhaps reflecting considerations of how furniture relates to architectural space and human scale. The viewer is invited to consider how materials traditionally associated with different craft disciplines might enter into productive dialogue, how color and texture can animate minimalist forms without compromising structural integrity, and how functional objects designed for everyday domestic life might simultaneously serve as vehicles for aesthetic expression and material experimentation.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- This piece of furniture employs a unique weaving technique that integrates walnut veneer into textile, transforming the originally fabric into a unique screen. When exposed to sunlight, the woven surface casts delicate and beautiful shadows. Weaving veneer into textile is a unique technique that machines are not capable of doing. Each wooden board undergoes a meticulous selection based on its grain and color, building a consistent sense of nature beauty.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- W * D * H : 508 * 304 * 1118 mm
- Tags
- Cabinet, Veneer Textile, Furniture, Material Innovation, Indoor Furniture
- Production Technology
- This cabinet is entirely handcrafted from walnut, including the textile panels on both sides, which are woven from a combination of cotton thread and walnut veneer. The technique of integrating wood veneer into textile weaving is a process that cannot be replicated by machines. Due to the hardness and thickness of the walnut veneer, the tension of the weave must be carefully and continuously adjusted—tight enough to securely hold the veneer strips in place, yet flexible enough to maintain structural integrity without causing displacement.
- Design Challenge
- The project posed creative and technical challenges, particularly in adapting thick wood veneer for weaving. Wood veneer lacks the tension typically required by a loom and thread fabric, making it necessary to carefully calculate the spacing between each column to maintain a good structure. Beyond the textile, the frame designed to hold the textile became another big technical challenge. Though the grooves are invisible from the outside, there are 28 hidden channels that secure the woven surface in place. Due to their seamless requirement and the thinness of each wooden board, cutting precise grooves along narrow edges proved fine-tuned craftsmanship, merging material research with construction precision.
- Project Duration
- The project started in October 2023 and finished in March 2024 in United States, and was exhibited in ICFF WANTED in May 2024.
- Operation Flow
- The cabinet features a slender profile suited for storing small objects, making it well-suited to living spaces and compact interiors. Its low height allows it to sit neatly beside a television, serving as a functional storage piece. Designed to be freestanding, the cabinet reveals its tactile quality when illuminated. Sunlight filtering through the woven textile creates a soft interplay of light and shadow. The pale-toned fabric responds gently to natural light, introducing a sense of airy and a renewed lightness to the surrounding space.
- Research
- The project is rooted in a deep investigation of materials and making techniques, centering on a textile innovation that integrates thin walnut veneer into a woven structure using a loom. The process involved extensive experimentation, beginning with a series of prototypes that tested veneer thicknesses, thread weights, and weaving patterns. A key challenge was preserving the tension necessary for weaving while accommodating the rigidity of wood—an issue resolved through careful calibration of spacing, tension, and structural support.
Traditional weaving tools were adapted for this process, with each strip of veneer hand-cut and softened for flexibility before being woven alongside cotton thread. Machines proved incompatible with the delicacy and precision required, making the technique entirely dependent on manual craftsmanship. The final textile achieves both strength and fluidity, allowing the wood grain to appear continuous across a pliable surface.
In parallel with material research, the project draws on classical furniture forms—particularly the trapezoidal cabinet, a shape now rare in contemporary contexts. Reinterpreted through this new textile language, the form is both familiar and reimagined, merging historic references with a distinctly modern sensibility. - Inspiration
- Inspired by the balanced spirit of nature, this cabinet reinterprets a classic trapezoidal form with three side panels composed of walnut veneer textile. The veneer is woven more densely near the frame, creating a visual and tactile gradient , not only in the viewing but also in the tactile experience. By blending rigid walnut with flexible textile, the piece explores harmony through material, offering a unique sensory experience that invites closer interaction and touch.
Colors of Weaving Wood Cabinet
Get Weaving Wood Cabinet
Grand Interview about Weaving Wood Cabinet
My work often centers around wood, and while learning the technique of bent lamination, I was introduced to veneer. I became intrigued by this paper-thin yet remarkably resilient material and began exploring its possibilities through a variety of experimental methods. These included cold bending, steam bending, laser cutting, sewing, vacuum lamination, and combining veneer with textiles and fabrics.For instance, I tried stitching veneer to different types of cloth, as well as sewing veneer pieces together on their own. One of these explorations, where veneer strips were woven together with cotton thread to create a textile-like material, eventually led to the development of this cabinet.
This piece is inspired by the technique itself—the essence of the material lies in blending two contrasting elements, wood and thread, into a single textile-like surface. The result is a semi-rigid, partially soft material that explores the balance between opposites. Every design decision was made to enhance this sense of harmony and seamless integration.The cabinet’s panels, for example, are woven with a gradient density to create a smooth transition between the textile surface and the solid wooden frame. The same approach is applied across all surfaces: the top uses lighter walnut boards, arranged from light to dark, moving from top to bottom. The woven panels also follow a gradient—from warm orange to deep brown—echoing the natural tones of walnut.All these design choices work together to create a cohesive and balanced visual language. As the viewer approaches the cabinet, they’ll notice a surprise: the walnut is also woven into the panels. This unexpected discovery invites touch, encouraging tactile interaction. For furniture, this physical connection is essential. Users don’t just see it, they feel it, and in that moment, the object reveals its true material poetry.
Creating this woven wood panel didn’t require highly precise calculations, but it did involve hands-on craftsmanship. I collaborated with an experienced textile partner, Huining Liu, who wove the panels by hand on a loom. This material can only be handmade, and one of its key advantages is that you can physically feel the tension of each line during the weaving process, allowing for immediate adjustments if it becomes too loose.To maintain consistent tension, the wood veneer strips are limited to a maximum width of 3/8 inch. Varying widths can lead to an uneven fabric, so we typically use similar width strips in one area. Wider veneer tends to loosen the weave and can’t be placed too closely together, as this would result in slack tension.As for sizing, we found that the final panel tends to shrink slightly once removed from the loom. Since the wood can’t stretch like traditional textiles, we addressed this by adding a wider serged edge around the woven panel. This not only compensates for the shrinkage but also allows the piece to fit securely within the cabinet frame.
First, I completed the 3D model on the computer, ensuring that every section requiring a channel was accurately built into the design with the correct dimensions and positions. Some of the more complex channel structures involved two or even three panels at once. To prevent errors, I carefully planned the cutting and assembly sequence for each component before starting. Since the cabinet has a trapezoidal form, i did a slight deviation in the angle of one edge, and it caused that panel to be remade. The process demanded a high degree of precision throughout. Each panel required a channel around its edges for secure fitting. For the side panels, I used a table saw to cut the channels along the outer edges. However, when the channel didn’t run through the entire surface, I used a horizontal mortising drill to cut it precisely. Each step demanded accurate alignment with the previous segment’s edge, which made this part particularly complex.The back panel also required internal channels. In this case, not only did the outer edges need to align correctly, but the channels between adjacent boards had to match precisely as well. This involved carefully calculating the distance between panels and the exact length of each edge to ensure both the seams and channels would align seamlessly after assembled.
During the initial material tests, I discovered the woven veneer’s unique light-filtering quality and decided to preserve it as a key feature. This subtle translucency brings a sense of breathability and lightness to the piece, softening the visual weight of the dark wood. To highlight this effect, I maximized the surface area covered by the woven panels and added an additional one at the back of the cabinet. This allows light to pass through from multiple angles, gently illuminating the interior and the objects within.
This collaboration was truly valuable, as her expertise in textiles greatly contributed to the making process. In furniture design, it’s essential to consider the properties of the textile being used. For example, since this fabric was entirely handwoven, its dimensions were naturally limited by the size of the loom, something I wouldn’t have thought of on my own. I believe the intersection of furniture and textile holds tremendous potential—not only in the traditional sense of upholstery, like sofas and chairs, where fabric is an inherent component—but also in more experimental ways. As people explore textile more widely, it becomes more than just cloth. It can be an elastic fiber made from recycled plastic, a surface material crafted from balloon flower bark, leather, paper, or even plant-based elements. In this sense, textile opens up a wide range of possibilities in furniture design, offering new directions for both function and form.
The choice to use a vintage-inspired trapezoidal form was intentional, as most modern cabinets are simple rectangular boxes, and trapezoidal shapes have become quite rare. By adopting this form, I aimed to enhance the cabinet’s uniqueness. Additionally, the angled sides allow more of the side panels to be visible from the front, creating a sense of visual balance.
I believe that material innovations like this will gradually become more common in the furniture design industry, especially as sustainability becomes a greater priority. In the Weaving Wood Cabinet, veneer served as the primary focus of my material exploration. After completing this piece, I dedicated significant time to researching new ways of working with veneer—such as sewing techniques, combining it with fabric, and experimenting with different shaping methods.To me, this work represents not only the beginning of my own journey into the possibilities of veneer, but also an important step in expanding the role of veneer within contemporary furniture design. By transforming veneer into a textile-like material and integrating it into a finished piece of furniture, this cabinet stands as a pioneering example of woven veneer application in furniture design.
First, I begin by sorting the walnut boards by color. After getting the material, I roughly cut each board to its intended size and then arrange them according to their shade. The lightest pieces are used for the upper parts of the cabinet, while the darker ones are placed toward the bottom, creating a subtle gradient from light to dark across the entire piece.Each walnut board also has a unique grain pattern, so during assembly, I carefully consider the direction of the grain when selecting and positioning each piece. I decide which side faces up, which section to trim, and how to align the boards. It was almost like assembling a puzzle. So that even up close, the wood grain appears continuous and visually harmonious.
I believe that in this project, the material innovation is not something that immediately draws attention. At first glance, it simply appears to be a cabinet. Only upon closer inspection does one realize that what seems like fabric is actually woven wood. This subtlety is what I find most compelling. The innovation isn’t used as a gimmick to grab attention, but rather integrated thoughtfully so that both functionality and material quality are fully expressed.From a distance, it reads as a functional cabinet. Up close, through touch, the hidden surprise of the material reveals itself. I think when different aspects of a design can be discovered at different distances, when each layer holds its own presence, that’s a sign of great balance in design.