This beautiful, minimalist collection was designed by renowned Japanese studio Nendo for Chinese lifestyle brand Zens. Launched at the Maison&Objet in Paris fair in January this year, this functionalist furniture and accessories collection are categorised into three series: Picto, Chirp, and Stone.

Picto
A furniture collection that consists of four types of furniture: a side table, a stool, a small shelf, and a container. Each piece has a triangular base while the tops vary depending on function; from cuboid and cylindrical tops used as shelves, to a linear top for a table and a curved edged top, which acts as a seat. The inspiration behind Picto stems from Kanji, the Chinese characters, where one word holds a multitude of meanings.

Chirp
These fine display systems borrow their appearance from everyday observations. By portraying single flower vases and small containers as small birds and resting them on motifs of electric lines or tree-shaped stands, an image of various sized birds resting their wings is expressed. The vases slot onto the grey panels and can be added and removed depending on the case of use.

Stone
The idea behind these stackable tea and coffee sets with round stone-like lids was to create a tableware collection where every element could be stacked on top of one another. The lids on the iron kettle and Chinese teapot are made of hollow silicone and are perforated on one side to double as tea strainers. The use of silicone means the lids have very low thermal conductivity while the teacups are made from urethane foam to prevent unwanted clatter.