reed bench sheaves by steven banken

‘sheaves’ by steven banken

at biesbosch national park in the netherlands, the act of cutting reed and willow shoots and bundling them just before winter is an annual event,making it a natural area for supply material. instead of letting the brush just decay, dutch designer steven banken‘s reintroduces these sheaves into natureas furniture pieces, whereby he has developed a simple stainless steel metal clamping bracket to hold bunches of the raw material together, forming bench seating, that is modifiable in length depending on how the reeds are cut. this gives the dried plant new life, a minimal interventionthat brings the reeds back into the environment as outdoor seating in the summer.

simple metal brackets are used to hold the raw material together

detail

one of today’s biesbosch reed cutters (left) and shots of the excessive growth of the plant at the national park