The COVID-19 pandemic brought a lot of changes in our lifestyles and urged us to rethink how we live, interact, and spend time with each other. To respond to changes in the way people gather and mingle in the post-pandemic world, Japan-based Misaki Kiyuna designed the Palette table. The table is inspired by the Japanese floor-sitting culture to facilitate communication and connection in modern homes.
Made from oak, this piece of furniture is a redesigned and refined version of the traditional Chadubai low table that Japanese people use for dining or other purposes. The designer wanted to bring back the Japanese culture of gathering around a table that seems to be fading away due to Westernization and changes in lifestyle. Keeping the culture and interaction thriving, the Palette table is designed to stimulate a similar experience and bring a sense of togetherness.
As the name suggests, the table is shaped like a color-mixing palette. It boasts a familiar design that can be used freely with plenty of space for people to sit around. The overall structure has three overlapping circles that create a curved silhouette. This meeting of circles creates a large depression where people sit to work and access the table for a variety of uses. Due to its curvaceous profile, it can be accessed not only from the front but from the sides as well.
This table with its easy-going form creates a sense of intimacy and harmony. The challenge was to find a synergy between balance and strength, and how it could be used in a space. After surpassing the challenges, Misaki created this table that is flexible, functional, and the epitome of Japanese culture of interacting and establishing good connections among each other.
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The accessible shape eradicates hard-reaching corners and provides you with a perfect table to be used daily. The curved surface of the table follows the contours of your elbow, facilitating better posture while sitting. Furthermore, there is a hole at the top of the table just like a color palette to put things on the bottom plate, which rotates and adds a sense of playfulness. You can even have your cat around, popping its head out of the small hole.
Underlining multipurpose uses, this thoughtful table is not only made to be used in Japanese-style rooms and spaces, but also as a low table in regular homes, workspaces, libraries, children’s rooms, and hotels. The Palette table is aesthetically pleasing and ergonomically sound. The table has been awarded the Iron A’ Design Award at the prestigious A’ Design Award 2024.
