Connected exhibition will showcase works by nine designers working remotely

Nine international designers have been challenged to create a table and seating that will suit new ways of working from  home while solely relying on digital communication.

As part of an initiative by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), Benchmark Furniture and the Design Museum, Connected is an experiment set out to explore how designers and craftsmen adapt their working practices during lockdown.

The designers involved include Ini Archibong (Switzerland), Maria Bruun (Denmark), Jaime Hayon (Spain), Heatherwick Studio (UK), Sebastian Herkner (Germany), Maria Jeglinska- Adamczewska (Poland), Sabine Marcelis (Netherlands), Studiopepe (Italy) and Studio Swine (UK / Japan).

They will each also record their creative journeys to illustrate how they approached the brief and developed their thoughts, sketches and ideas during these challenging times.

The resulting pieces will be shown at the Design Museum in London as an installation called Connected once the museum re-opens to the public, celebrating the act of physically coming back together.

The project aims to challenge both the designers and craftsmen at Benchmark to work in innovative ways by relying solely on digital communication and video conferencing to bring the designers’ visions to life.

In an exclusive series of by Herman Miller, designers including Brian Alexander, Keiji Tekeuchi and Michael Anastassiades also revealed various pieces of advice about working from home and how it has impacted their creative process.