Seating situation: Layer’s ’Cradle’ collection comes to Clerkenwell

How to enhance performance through the reimagining of traditional product typologies is a bit of an obsession for Layer's Benjamin Hubert.
Take his Clerkenwell Design Week showcase, for example. As well as his 3D printed 'GO' wheelchair, Layer transformed Clerkenwell London's reading room into a delightful lounge of colour and comfort with the 'Cradle' collection, designed for Moroso.
Originally unveiled at Milan's Salone del Mobile, the Clerkenwell showing brought the trio of designs together, using the high-back and low-back chairs to create comfortable seating pockets, with dynamic room dividers completing the scene.
'We have a passion for developing new materials to solve problems at Layer,' explains Hubert, 'and in combination with Moroso’s love of textiles, we have arrived at a new type of mesh construction that offers better comfort through less materials, delivering a rich new aesthetic.'
Using a three-dimensional stretch textile created in collaboration with an Austrian factory, the knitted material is at once high strength and low density; lending flexible support to sitters and visual vibrancy in one fell swoop. A metal backrest cradles the cushioned seat block, and of course all colours can be customised.
Aside from the strong visual statement, the chairs also make a seriously satisfying seating experience – the elegance of a conventional upholstered lounge chair with the unique comfort of a hammock, without the hassle of awkwardly climbing in and out.
The Clerkenwell showing brought the trio of designs together, using the high-back and low-back chairs to create comfortable seating pockets
Aside from the strong visual statement, the chairs also make a seriously satisfying seating experience
Dynamic room dividers completed the scene at Clerkenwell London
The collection is realised in a three-dimensional stretch textile created in collaboration with an Austrian factory
'With Moroso’s love of textiles, we have arrived at a new type of mesh construction that offers better comfort through less materials, delivering a rich new aesthetic,' explains Hubert
INFORMATION
Photography courtesy of Layer
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
The Subaru Forester is the definition of unpretentious automotive design
It’s not exactly king of the crossovers, but the Subaru Forester e-Boxer is reliable, practical and great for keeping a low profile
By Jonathan Bell
-
Sotheby’s is auctioning a rare Frank Lloyd Wright lamp – and it could fetch $5 million
The architect's ‘Double-Pedestal’ lamp, which was designed for the Dana House in 1903, is hitting the auction block 13 May at Sotheby's.
By Anna Solomon
-
Naoto Fukasawa sparks children’s imaginations with play sculptures
The Japanese designer creates an intuitive series of bold play sculptures, designed to spark children’s desire to play without thinking
By Danielle Demetriou
-
Garden chairs for outdoor dining by Allermuir and Benjamin Hubert
This family of outdoor chairs inspired by the British countryside marks Benjamin Hubert’s garden furniture debut and features a stackable design in steel rod and wire in an array of playful colours
By Rosa Bertoli
-
The architecture of Swedish forests inspires Front Design’s evolving collection for Moroso
After years of research into the wilderness of Swedish forests, the design duo developed a collection with Moroso that replicates natural textures with furniture. Some of their designs have now been translated into practical seating for the home
By Rosa Bertoli
-
Blanket solution: Tekla Fabrics collaborates with John Pawson
The new line of blankets is inspired by the architect’s Cotswolds home
By Tilly Macalister-Smith
-
Ace Hotel and Block Shop unveil capsule collection at Modernism Week
By Elly Parsons
-
Illustrated life: the first in our new series of deftly drafted dream homes
By Rosa Bertoli
-
Magic carpets: Wallpaper* meets Jan Kath
By Rosa Bertoli
-
Creative city: Clerkenwell Design Week 2015 takes over London
By Rosa Bertoli