Cabinet

This piece of furniture, "Table=Chest", is a small chest with solid side supports, tapering to the top. It is veneered in beech with two drawers with cut-out handles and it unhinges in middle to become rectangular table. Table=Chest was designed by Shin and Tomoko Azumi in 1995, this example was made in 2000 by Frank E. Bailey.

The Azumis came to London in 1992, to study furniture and industrial design at the Royal College of Art. Since then, they have produced a series of ingenious, space-saving, multi-purpose designs for cabinets, shelving and domestic utensils. Table=Chest is hinged so that the chest unit can unfold to form a table. Their emphasis on cabinet-making skills has helped blur the distinction between craft and design and in 2000 their work was featured in an exhibition at the Crafts Council in London.