Sculptural coffee tables in balance between function and beauty

6 December 2022

Living room sculptures, part of the most beautiful convivial moments as well as simple moments of domestic relaxation, the coffee tables are furnishings with small dimensions but with surprising formal properties. Useful, indispensable for comfortable living room, they are the protagonists of collections in which the designers compete with unexpected combinations of materials and finishes and discreet yet characterful formal interpretations. From metal to wood, from glass to marble, here is a review of twelve of the most interesting projects that will be appreciated both as a gift and as an indispensable accessory in a welcoming living room.

Mastea by Matteo Zorzenoni for Miniforms

Mastea is a small table that tells the ancient Murano art of mouth glass blowing and its craftsmanship. With a result that surprises for the contemporaneity of its style given by the rounded, compact, and essential shape and by the juxtaposition of materials: the body is in glass, amber, blue or smoky gray, while the base and top are in ash wood or canaletto walnut.

Allure by Baxter

The charm of a Greek temple and the austerity of 20th century architecture: the Allure coffee table collection by Baxter is a reference to formal suggestions from the past reinterpreted with the functional lens of the present. In detail, the supporting structure has a series of grooves that reproduce the surface of Doric columns, while the top, round or rectangular, smooth or oxidized, recalls a formal trend from the last century.

Cicognino by Franco Albini for Cassina

Franco Albini designed Cicognino in 1958 offering an excellent lesson in how to balance playfulness and elegance, form and function. The coffee table evokes the graceful body of a small stork and in this it arouses a feeling of familiarity, accompanied by essential elegance that makes it perfect for any room in the house.

Coffee Table by Aldo Bakker for Karakter

This coffee table was conceived by the Danish designer Aldo Bakker as an authentic sculpture. It is generated by wrapping a single sheet of steel around itself in a fluid movement that enchants the eye. A dynamic that connects form and material also enhanced by the colour: an elegant and neutral sage green that integrates easily into different furnishing contexts.

Curved by Kristina Dam

As the name suggests, Curved is a coffee table whose shape is a tribute to curves, protagonists of the union between aesthetics and function. The structure is in fact made up of a sheet of steel which has two curves at the base which transform into practical magazine racks. The plan is essential and functional.

Enoki Metal by Philipp Mainzer for E15

The Enoki collection (on the cover) was born as an interpretation of marble and then evolved into the creative use of metal. In the steel finish the essential and monolithic shape is enhanced, which evokes the structural elements of an ideal architecture.

Francis by Constance Guisset for Petite Friture

The Francis coffee table is a creative reinterpretation of the mirror that bears the same name, designed in 2012 by Constance Guisset. Poetic and delicate, with its shaded surface and rounded shapes, it evokes the dreamlike shapes of clouds in the sky.

Lato by Luca Nichetto for &Tradition

Luca Nichetto, a Venetian designer with a studio in Stockholm, blends Italian and Swedish soul in this collection of coffee tables which accompanies the attention to detail with the essential functionality of Scandinavian inspiration. The result is a coffee table whose base is like a gem to be discovered; a jewel hidden in the otherwise essential structure of the furniture.

Leather Side Table by Jaime Hayon for Wittmann

Leather is a material of choice in the living room, but we are used to seeing it as a garment for sofas and armchairs. Jaime Hayon uses it for the base of this coffee table in an unprecedented combination with the marble of the top.

Pillar by Kristian Sofus Hansen & Tommy Hyldahl for 101 Copenhagen

Pillar is a collection of tables with generous proportions that declines the shape of the circle in three moments: the large cylinder of the base, a smaller cylinder that acts as a joint and the top. Available in the more austere burnt black finish and the more dazzling brass finish.

Shuffle by Mia Hamborg for &Tradition

This coffee table evokes the construction game in its shapes and colors. Each element is different from the others but together they create a perfectly balanced and harmonious combination. And the mix of colors makes it easy to combine with different furnishings and contexts.

Sino of AYTM

The Sino coffee table collection follows a modular approach: it can be placed alone in the center of the room or against the wall, even as a bedside table. Combined with two other elements it forms a perfect living room support surface.

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