MATERIAL

Perception and Being

AUTHENTIC
MATERIAL

The skin is the largest sensory organ in the human body. Nevertheless, decisions about the design of living spaces – both indoors and outdoors – are often made primarily on the basis of visual appeal.

Inspiration, tangibility – or the desire for illusion. Isn't mimicry also part of nature?

INTERIOR-LEFA

Recycled leather is an industrial material that can be processed by machine and is valuable. It can be dyed and shaped using various punching techniques. Leather scraps and natural rubber are turned into bison or reptile skin.

Two people standing and sitting in front of a large piece of furniture in a room.
A person walking in a room with large windows, a shelf with a lamp, and a concrete floor.
A person walking past three black stools in a room with a white wall.
A close-up of a black and brown shelf with a number 0 on it. The shelf is attached to a wall and has a small square opening on the right side. The shelf is made of metal and has a wooden frame. The wall behind the shelf is white.
A wooden shelf with two potted plants and books. One of the books is titled "SMALL" and the other has "md" on the cover.
Empty office with large windows, a desk, and a chair.
Black desk with a computer keyboard, mouse, lamp, and books on top, next to a black chair.

SEMESTER PROJECT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINZ

As part of the ‘Material as Design Impulse’ project series, Mainz University of Applied Sciences is working closely with external partners. In the winter semester of 2024/25, Bernd Benninghoff, Professor of Spatial Design, Furniture Design and Materials Technology, collaborated with five companies that provided support with materials or advice on concept development, taking into account serial furniture production and digital manufacturing processes.

MODULIGN

Modular shelving system and room divider. Flexibly adaptable, expandable and can be used as a room divider. The vertical elements are inserted using wedge connections for easy assembly and high stability.

THE CLICK

The name says it all. Precisely integrated studs in the Lefa cover can be easily clicked together using a zip-like mechanism, without any additional fastenings.

HAID.

Design Kai Krautsieder & Delu Austria. Sophisticated functionality meets space-saving design. A wall shelf that can be converted into a stable work surface in no time at all, revealing the storage compartments behind it.

NUT & LEDER

Design Anna Beckers & Lana Piecha. Modular, sustainable, tool-free. The wall panel system combines aesthetics, functionality and a three-dimensional surface with an exciting feel. With a high degree of design freedom – and fully recyclable.

STACK. FLAT PACK TABLE.

Design Charlotte Nesseler & Jannik Nehrbaß. Sustainable design for flexible spaces. A flat-pack table specially developed for small rooms with limited space, which can be assembled and disassembled in just a few steps without the need for tools.

CLEAN DESK.

An innovative table top that keeps things tidy. It consists of three glued layers – at its core is a biofibre board from Fundermax, finished on both sides with Cohera leather fibre material.

NETWORK

Design is at the forefront. Plate edges are there to be looked beyond. Exciting projects require specialists, experts and accomplices. Salamander is building a network of like-minded people. Because taste is a commitment.

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