AXI3 XL OFFICE DESK

Designed by Jan Gliński Studios, built with components from their modular AXI3 system.

Brutalist, sleek, sharp, and mildly reminiscent of a Macbook (as ironically depicted). I admire this piece because of how all of my observations and feelings seem to clash with one another. The desk itself is very slim, with no thick parts outside of the metal joining cubes, which makes it look fragile, especially when you concentrate on the legs. It makes me think of a very thin skeleton bearing weight. Or dry spaghetti noodles. The tabletop itself is also very thin, which seems to both balance out and complement the fragility of the legs. And then you take into account that the structure is made from steel, which kind of fights back against that illusion that something might snap. The desk is very utilitarian; there aren’t any frilly moldings or varied textures and colors to give it contrast within itself. Just super simple. Yet looking more closely at the joints adds a sense of complexity as to the ways the metal bones are able to connect with each other so cleanly.

It’s really interesting how a desk can evoke all of these feelings that sit on opposite sides of their spectrums: thin and frail structures paired with unyielding and durable metal, perfect edges and clean details against machinery.

Some more information on the design: the tabletop is made from stainless steel but can be made in other materials like oak. The studio also produces numerous other beautiful designs like the boa lamp, so I’d highly encourage you to check their work out!