One idea. Two design duos. Two approaches. Two forms. One purpose.

What began as a conversation with Tawanda and Francisco of @yy__exchange back in 2021, off the back of 19 Chairs, led us to question “do we need another chair?” This became an exploration of something much smaller: to design a connector, a bracket, a junction that could act as a simple gesture of creativity and a springboard for design.

Starting with the same material and the same purpose — connecting lengths of 44mm square-section timber to build furniture — we arrived at two different expressions of the same idea.

For us (slide 1), the connector became a chair itself: a playful, miniature CNC-milled aluminium expression of our design language. For YY (slide 2), the same function took on an entirely different form — one that speaks to their own way of thinking and making.

Neither more right than the other. Both are gestures of creativity, invitations to play, build and converse. Ways of connecting both physically and metaphorically.

Two identities. Two ways of thinking.

A connection, and a point of difference. We agreed to disagree.

Designed around 44mm square-section timber.

The timber lengths slot neatly between the chair’s legs, fixing through the seat and backrest to connect timber to timber, or timber to sheet material.

A miniature chair, doing the work of a connector.

Using four chair connectors, we created a simple wooden stool to demonstrate the connector in use.

44mm square-section beech forms the four legs, connecting to a solid beech seat.

Dimensions: H440 × ∅350 mm

Materials: bead-blasted and anodised aluminium, beech finished with OSMO