Country Pick 2017 / / Student

Trapesi

• Company
  Phebos Xenakis, Belgium
• Lead Designer
  Phebos Xenakis
• Design Team
  Phebos Xenakis
• Client
  Howest
• Project Link
  view

It was obvious people struggle when attending
a public place,café as where to put their bag
or purse.In some cultures it's even considered
as an act of bad luck to place your bag on the
ground. The challenge for me was to create a
system that solves this problem. Preferably I
wanted to integrate this system in the design
of the table. I wanted the system not to act
as an extension but rather as a design aspect
of the table itself.
Trapesi offers a unique solution as where to
hang your purse or bag at a public place. The
legs are indirectly connected with the
tabletop through the middle structure. This
makes it look as if the tabletop is levitating
and creates a more open feel.
Each corner of the table consists of a fold
that can be used as a hook to hang a bag/purse
on it. If so desired the fold can also be used
as a compartment for your magazine or
newspaper.
The four folds are the most important parts as
they offer structural stability and
functionality.
This bistro table is mainly composed out of 3
materials. The legs and tabletop are made from
solid oak wood. The part in between with the
folds at each corner was coated with a layer
of polyurethane. This coating served two
purposes. It gave the design a sleek satin
look whilst at the same time reduced sharp
edges to prevent any damage regarding the
bags,purses hanged on there.
The most challenging part was to integrate a
system with hooks without ruining the design.
It was crucial for the hooks to be placed at
an ergonomic position that allowed the user to
retain visual contact with his/her stuff.
The folds at each corner could also be easily
translated to a family of products if so
desired.

Bio
Phebos Xenakis is a young Belgian designer with Greek roots. From a young age Phebos Xenakis was attracted to the idea of creation. Later in his life he pursued this interest starting architecture in high school. Having finished high school he migrated to a rather different yet equally interesting field, product design. Over the years he specialized in designing furniture, mainly focusing on experimental pieces. After finishing two additional postgraduates (one being furniture design) he currently is exploring the new possibilities that can be found in the furniture industry.

Other prizes
A Design Award Gold 2017 European Product Design Award Silver 2017 A Design Award Silver 2018 European Product Design Award Silver 2018