plastic used to make disposable containers turns into chairs at bottega veneta's winter show

"Each chair made by Max Lamb for the Bottega Veneta show starts from four-inch-thick slabs of expanded polystyrene. The designer prepares a cutting plan before production, which divides each slab into measured parts to reduce waste. The chair consists of separate components for the seat, back, and legs, and in total, the production of 400+ chairs requires thousands of individual pieces."

"The making process of Max Lamb's chairs at Bottega Veneta Winter 2026 show follows clear steps: cutting, gluing, assembling, and spraying. The designer uses hot wire tools to cut the polystyrene, and for this project, which refers to his previous work Economy Chair (01) for the gallery Salon 94 Design, he develops hot wire cutters for the required shapes."

"After assembly, each chair receives a coating of unpigmented polyurethane rubber, used directly from the tin. This layer seals the foam surface and creates a continuous skin around the chair, and it results in a seat with a foam interior and a rubber exterior. All chairs are hand-cut and hand-finished, too."

British designer Max Lamb created more than 400 chairs from expanded polystyrene for Bottega Veneta's Winter 2026 fashion show at Palazzo San Fedele in Milan. The chairs, made from four-inch-thick foam slabs typically used for disposable food containers, feature cream-colored surfaces with uneven textures resulting from hand-cutting. The production process involves cutting polystyrene using hot wire tools, assembling separate components for seats, backs, and legs, and applying unpigmented polyurethane rubber coating to seal and protect the foam. Each chair is individually hand-finished, with the entire project requiring thousands of individual pieces. This work reflects Lamb's 15-year research into expanded polystyrene as a design material.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine