The Sobreiro furniture collection, designed by Brazilian design duo Humberto and Fernando Campana, consists of one chair and three cabinets, all made almost entirely of cork.

The idea of the project was to combine Portuguese materials, since cork is one of Portugal’s main export materials, with Brazilian design. The armchair is made entirely of cork, including its structure.

Two of the three cabinets have a structure made of MDF, and are further made of expanded natural cork agglomerate. This material is made by heating cork, without the need to use any additive. One of them was inspired by the shape of waves. The third cabinet is a hybridism between expanded cork and clay.

“Cork has always fascinated us, not only because it is an ecological material, but because of its lightness. The texture, variety of applications and isolating enrich the possibilities of expressing through this material a lot of new concepts and gestures,” says Humberto Campana.

The Sobreiro collection was developed in partnership with Consulate General of Portugal in Sao Paulo, cork supplier Amorim, the furniture company Época and the brand European Capital of Furniture (Capital Europeia do Móvel), promoted by the City Council of Paços de Ferreira. The pieces are exhibited at the Consulate General of Portugal in Sao Paulo until 19 August.

Photos courtesy of Estudio Campana and Epoca and Amorim Photo by Nuno Sousa Dias