We’ve seen laser-cut steel products before (3fold), as well as CNC-cut birch plywood (Breakplane). We’ve even seen how precision folding techniques can transform the merest substance of polycarbonate mesh (Origami Chair). But how about a rigid yet fold-able plastic? Patrick Frey’s Nook Stool and Bench for Vial belongs among the aforementioned products in the sense that they each begin as a flat surface scored with a network of potential plaits. It’s probably easiest to envision the notion by picturing the iconic paper airplane, which, in the hands of an even modestly skilled artisan, goes from flat to fully three-dimensional and ready for flight in the space of four quick folds. Multiply the complexity factor by about a thousand and you’ll begin to approach the innovations of Nook, Frey’s bench/stool series made of a revolutionary new plastic.

Nook Stool. Designed by Patrick Frey for Vial.

Nook Goes From Flat to Fabulous, Indoors to Out

Nook is constructed from Varioline, an extraordinarily durable and highly resilient form of sheet plastic created using a “high-tech injection moulding process to produce a closed-cell foam core enclosed between two highly compressed, non-porous surface layers.” The result is a weather-proof, UV-resistant substance that’s both stiff and flexible. Prized for its versatility, Varioline has been used in the auto and marine industries for years, so it’s about time someone co-opted it for contemporary A&D. Frey’s Nook exploits the advantages of Varioline from an aesthetic as well as functional perspective. The piece’s unique appearance derives from the natural inclinations of the material, as Frey imaginatively carves up the original sheet plastic into the hundred or so knife-edge delineations that culminate in Nook’s tantalizing interplay of inside and out, concave and convex, hard exterior edges and inscrutable interior niches.

About the Manufacturer: Vial’s designs are rather unconventional, in large measure because of their emphasis on innovative materials. All of the German manufacturer’s products are “made from innovative, high-end and weatherproof materials.” Varioline is the flagship example of such. A rigid yet fold-able plastic, Varioline offers excellent potential for artisans and designers, as it can be scored and bent into innumerably appealing forms, like the Nook Stool and Bench. For this auspicious product, Vial has taken home an iF material award, an iF product design award, and a GOOD DESIGN award.