Table
THE ARTWORK
STATEMENT
About the Work
Clad in silver, it marks the passage of time once more
Michelle & Caligo is a furniture brand born from UNDULATION. This piece, part of their table collection, was born from the encounter between ancient cedar—which embodies an incredible 2,600 years of history—and iron transformed by fire.
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2,600 Years of Memories Lying Buried in the Ground
The tabletop is made of “Jindai cedar,” excavated from deep within Mount Chokai. True to its name—which literally means “cedar from the age of the gods”—this wood has lain dormant deep underground for countless years, quietly accumulating the passage of time in a place where neither light nor wind could reach it.
By searing its surface with a torch flame, the grain, knots, cracks, and raised areas—carved into the wood over many years—emerge vividly. Next, a special coating composed primarily of genuine silver is applied in layers. However, the silver’s coloration is not artificially manipulated. How brightly it shines, where it dims, and how its color changes—all of this is left entirely up to the Kamidai cedar itself.
In the hard, tight knots, the silver shimmers sharply and vividly.In contrast, the soft wood grain that spreads between the knots deeply absorbs the paint, harboring a subdued, muted glow. In some places, it becomes a cool silver; in others, it melts into black, remaining as an ambiguous glow that never quite becomes silver. This is not the uniform luster of metal. It is the hue chosen by the density and memories of a tree that has lived for 2,600 years.
The wood grain, undulating in layer upon layer, resembles both geological strata and underground waterways. The traces of knots—complexly loosening, undulating, and overlapping—transcend the mere expression of wood, forming a single, massive abstract painting. Fire and silver did not create these patterns; they merely guided what lay hidden deep within a long slumber into the light.
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A romantic twist that fire bestowed upon iron
The tabletop, with its overwhelming presence, is supported by multiple iron legs made from pure square iron bars that have been heated over a fire and twisted into irregular shapes. No two of these iron rods are alike; sometimes they stretch toward the earth like plant roots, and at other times they wander through space like slender branches or tentacles.Although they serve as a structural framework to bear the weight, their form possesses a grace that cannot be described by rigidity alone. The twists born in the flames are powerful, delicate, and somehow romantic.
The iron legs never compete with the substantial presence of the silver-hued Jindai cedar. While maintaining solid strength, they stand as if melting into the black space, quietly allowing the tabletop to stand out. Heavy wood and iron, dazzling light and deep shadows, eternal time and a fleeting flame. These contrasting elements come together in a harmonious balance, maintaining a sense of tension without detracting from one another.
STATEMENT
Embracing the Past, Living for the Future
The ancient cedar, which had lain dormant underground for 2,600 years, could never have imagined in its wildest dreams that one day it would be clad in silver, supported by twisted iron, and begin to mark a new era as a table.
The encounter between people and materials is not predetermined either. A single cedar tree that lived in the distant past emerges from the ground, comes into contact with fire and silver, is forged with iron, and stands in a modern space. That serendipity is the very essence of the mysterious encounters that occur in life.
This is not a piece of furniture designed to preserve the past.
It is a table that allows us to live in the present while holding onto 2,600 years of memories.
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Table
Clad in silver, it marks the passage of time once more
