Ying Zhang and Ida Thonsgaard’s Playtime is flooring, a chair and a table that starts flat and is folded into shape.

The furniture works almost like paper folding. When unfolded, it is flat, lightweight and easy to transport. With two specfic folding techniques, the flat pieces are transformed into a chair or a table, held together with clips and small magnets. The floor boards are also put together with easy ‘click’ joints and the length/width can be continued endlessly. One of the main themes of the collection is ‘fabric’ – how to give solid, interior pieces a light and playful character, through the use of texture and pattern and a ‘fluid’ assembling method. Using wood, laminate and bright blue and orange colours, the self-essembly pieces evoke the visual imagery of classic childhood toys. The collection also include stilistic refrences back to both Asian and Scandinavian design traditions, fusing origami and the patterns of knitted, nordic sweaters. Zhang and Thonsgaard. 

Ying Zhang and Ida Thonsgaard work within the field of product, space and surface design with a background in chinese/asian and scandinavian design culture. www.zhangthonsgaard.com