Benchmark Builds a Behemoth for Designjunction UK

Photo courtesy of Benchmark

Benchmark Builds a Behemoth for Designjunction UK

Following the ‘Made by Benchmark’ workshop at The Tramshed during the 2010 London Design Festival, Benchmark resolved to develop a concept for this year’s festival that would demonstrate not only their craftsmanship and design but also their innovative thinking and ability to deal with difficult and complex design problems. They’ve come up with an extraordinary exhibit – a gigantic 11m table that will be installed into the basement of Victoria House where Design Junction, London’s most anticipated international design show, showcasing world-renowned brands, will be hosting their exhibition from 22-26 September.

The table will be made from a log that took 6 months to locate. It is the longest planked oak log that any of Benchmark’s sources in the timber trade has ever known. To machine the log, Benchmark has had to cut holes through the walls on either side of the workshop. It might be expected that a table of these proportions would need a substantial underframe but this table will deliver long, clean lines with minimal interference from the understructure as a result of an inventive design and intelligent use of materials.

This is not the first time that Benchmark has made a giant table. They made the vast refectory tables for Hogwarts Castle for the Harry Potter Films and last year, The Queen’s College commissioned a table for their new dining room to seat 32 Fellows of the college. For more conventional rooms, Benchmark sell a number of tables by leading designers such as Terence Conran, Russell Pinch and Steuart Padwick, all of which come in standard 8 and 10 seat options or can be made in bespoke sizes.

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