ZHEKAI.ZHANG


Wood Furniture Collection
TREE ODYSSEY

This project originated from a fallen cedar tree, brought down by a typhoon at the entrance of the studio. The event became an unexpected starting point for an inquiry into the relationship between trees, humans, and domestic spaces. Within just three days, an eight-meter-tall cedar transformed from a thriving, leafy entity into an uprooted mass, ultimately reduced to wooden fragments by municipal workers. While Zhekai Zhang has long been invested in material-driven design, this incident offered a rare, visceral encounter with the life cycle of materials in everyday surroundings. This project aims to grant the tree a second life—reintegrating it into human environments and reestablishing its relationship with its surroundings through design.

A fallen cedar tree in front of the studio
​Tree Odyssey Chair
Questioning Anthropocentric Perspectives on Natural Materials
In a world dominated by anthropocentric thinking, the autonomy of natural life forms is often diminished, and their rich, multidimensional histories, aesthetics, and existence are flattened into singular, utilitarian values. Within the realm of solid wood furniture, traditional artisans once possessed an intimate sensitivity to the material. However, industrial production has replaced this nuanced craftsmanship with mass manufacturing, transforming wood into an inert, mechanical material.
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​When wood transitions from a living tree to a functional object, its journey spans geographies and temporalities, undergoing numerous stages of selection and processing before it ultimately becomes part of domestic life. The modern furniture industry prioritizes smoothness and refinement, systematically removing any natural “imperfections” caused by organic growth. Furthermore, wood species are ranked based on economic value, with hardwoods such as oak and walnut commanding significantly higher prices than softwoods like pine and cedar.
​Tree Odyssey Side Tables
Reevaluating the Material Hierarchy
While craftsmen often dismiss softwoods as difficult to work with, a designer’s perspective challenges this bias—no tree holds greater intrinsic value than another. Both hardwoods and softwoods possess distinct aesthetic and material qualities. Zhekai Zhang approaches materials as an outsider, advocating for the voices of undervalued woods. He seeks to create a freer space for exploration and unexpected outcomes, allowing supposedly inferior materials to reclaim their agency.
Instead of polishing wood to an artificially flawless finish, Zhang accentuates its raw textures, applying a layer of white wood wax oil to preserve its organic ruggedness. The resulting forms reject strict linearity yet maintain a powerful physical presence. This approach subverts conventional furniture-making norms, challenging the obsession with refinement and embracing the natural essence of the material.




​Tree Odyssey Shelf
The Aesthetic of the “Unfinished”
The concept of “unfinished” serves as a central theme throughout this project, standing in opposition to the pursuit of “perfection.” Luxury furniture typically undergoes an exhaustive process of refinement—sandpapering to the highest possible grit, followed by layers of wax or lacquer to create a seamless, polished surface. In doing so, nature’s inherent textures and irregularities are systematically erased, leaving behind a controlled aesthetic that selectively reintroduces traces of natural vitality into human environments in a performative manner.
Conversely, Tree Odyssey deliberately embraces an aesthetic of defiance. Rather than striving for conventional notions of excellence, its so-called “crudeness” becomes a continuation of the wood’s intrinsic life force. The material carries the imprints of both its organic past and human intervention, resisting complete assimilation into industrially dictated standards.









Material as a Process in Flux
This hands-on project allowed Zhekai Zhang to experience, first-hand, the evolving nature of wood at every stage of its transformation. It also prompted a critical examination of whether each production step is essential to the final outcome. Wood is never static—it expands, contracts, and even cracks over time due to changes in humidity. In this sense, woodworking is inherently an “unfinished” craft.
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When does a material transformation reach completion? Can sanding and refining continue indefinitely? These questions challenge the notion of a definitive endpoint in furniture-making. Zhang proposes a shift in design thinking—one that embraces raw, unpolished growth as a method of inquiry. By leaving furniture in an ostensibly “unfinished” state, he seeks to extend the continuum of the tree’s life, creating a parallel between its natural evolution and its role within human spaces.
Wood Sand-blast Test




Making process of pulishing
Craft as a Tribute to Nature
What appears to be an “imperfect” surface treatment is, in fact, a deliberate homage to the tree’s original habitat. The furniture’s textures mimic weathering, moss growth, and other natural patterns, amplifying the visual and tactile history embedded within the wood. Instead of erasing the tree’s past, the design seeks to extend its legacy—allowing it to retain the traces of its former existence while adapting to its new role within human spaces.