Plywood. When a small box company in Oregon invented it just over 100 years ago, no one knew just how ubiquitous a building material it would become. These days the United States produces about 15 BILLION square feet a year. Used for just about everything from concrete forms to cabinetry, a lot of the plywood produced every year eventually winds up at the dump in the form of scrap.
One man is doing his part to keep at least a little of that 15 billion sf out of the landfill by turning it into striking pieces of furniture, such as the rePly chair above.
Artist Steve Lawler began his journey in the artisan furniture world helping out as a child at his grandfather’s woodshop. After pursuing a successful career in art and photography, he found himself drawn back to working with wood, first as a sculptor, and then as a furniture maker.
Feeling frustrated with the amount of waste involved in the making of furniture, and seeing his pile of scrap material grow, he decided to experiment with ways of putting all that discarded wood to good use, and thus the rePly line of plywood furniture was born.
He now collects his discarded scrap from local cabinet and furniture shops, and uses it to create beautiful chairs, benches, tables and mirror frames.
The amazing variation between the various layers of plywood gives the surface plane a lot of visual impact. All without any additional impact to the environment. Best of all, he takes custom commissions, so whether it’s a coffee table or a chaise lounge, he can translate this great look into something that fits in your project.
The only thing that keeps this furniture from being as green as it gets is that the plywood scraps may still contain some small traces of urea formaldehyde from their manufacture. However, Steve Lawler strives to use only aco-friendly adhesives and finishes in his furniture, so as long as you do not place these pieces in a poorly ventilated room, or a nursery, the possible trace amounts of formaldehyde should be a minimal issue.
In addition to rePly, Steve Lawler also has a lovely line of reclaimed douglas fir furniture, which he calls, not too surprisingly, reFir.
So, does his work cause you to look at plywood in a new way?
