Recomposed Bamboo

For his ongoing project Recomposed Bamboo, Chris Kabel investigated the composition of the bamboo tube and how it can be implemented outside of its current associations with ‘eco’ or ‘colonial’ furniture styles. Kabel initiated this research during a bamboo residency with the craft organisation PACC in China in 2016. Bamboo’s strength mainly stems from the outer part of the trunk, where the longest fibres are found. Kabel found that if a bamboo stem is split, flipped around and glued back together again, profiles are created that offer new possibilities both constructively and aesthetically. This configuration is immensely strong and can be used in the manufacture of profiles for furniture and utensils usually made of metal or wood. Kabel demonstrated the qualities of Recomposed Bamboo with a stool whose legs are arrestingly ‘inside-out’. The project is ongoing, with a factory in China currently testing prototypes for a furniture and tool line.