Waste as a Resource: Sculptural Seating from Construction Scrap

At the recent 3 Days of Design festival in Copenhagen, Spanish designer Sara Regal showcased a furniture series made entirely from discarded building materials. Exhibited in fashion designer Cecilie Bahnsen’s showroom as part of Residue: Soft Remains, the project reimagines waste as a source of aesthetic and structural potential—offering fresh inspiration for furniture, product, and interior designers seeking sustainable alternatives.

Building with the Unwanted

Instead of grinding down construction debris into uniform material, Regal retained the character of the waste she collected. Working with insulation foam, polyester, wooden planks, and cork sourced from construction sites around Mallorca, she assembled six sculptural seats using what she found in its original form. The result is a collection of robust, layered objects that balance improvisation with design intent.

Each seat features a mix of natural and synthetic waste. Rather than masking these origins, Regal highlights them. One chair, for instance, combines layers of contrasting textures like a slice of cake—a visual and tactile collage that celebrates imperfection and reuse.

Sculptural Forms with Sensory Appeal

To finish the seats, Regal used pieces of found polyester to create soft, colourful surfaces. These coverings provide comfort while unifying the diverse materials beneath. The forms are organic, guided by the shape and size of the available scraps, resulting in unique objects that appear both raw and refined.

This method shows how construction offcuts—often destined for landfill—can be transformed into compelling design statements. The seats tell a material story, inviting users to experience waste not as residue, but as resource.

From Concept to System

Although this was a one-off collection, Regal sees broader potential. She envisions expanding the technique into a full modular system, applying similar methods to other furniture typologies like tables. Her approach, always hands-on and intuitive, aims to explore multiple ways of working with waste rather than follow a fixed design path.

This project resonates strongly with today’s design challenges. It offers a practical and poetic example of circular design, where material origin, process, and aesthetics are interconnected. For professionals across product and interior design disciplines, Regal’s work presents a compelling model for innovation using local, discarded resources.

Residue: Soft Remains was curated by Carmen Riestra (Vasto Gallery), María Baños (Art Studies), and Cecilie Bahnsen. It ran from 19 to 20 June 2025 during Copenhagen’s 3 Days of Design.

Source: Dezeen
Photos: Tine Bek