Hard Lines, Soft Living

LOCHA DESIGN STUDIO is redefining outdoor furniture by blending African heritage with BOLD FORMS and PLAYFUL COLOUR.

- DUMISANI MNISI

HERITAGE IN FORM

“Bringing the comfort of the indoors outdoors” was the guiding outlook for Locha Design Studio's new outdoor range, the Akan Collection. Created by industrial and product designer Tshidzo Mangena, the range comprises bold, futuristic furniture pieces perfectly suited to the South African climate. “We felt that there isn’t much on offer in the outdoor space from local designers, and we wanted to close that gap,” he says. Launched at Design Week South Africa, the range consists of couches, chairs and tables conceptualised from the studio's popular existing piece, the Ivory couch.

For Tshidzo, the range is about changing the conversation around how people look at and experience outdoor furniture. With the emphasis usually being on practicality and weather durability, style and creativity can often be overlooked. He poses the question: why can’t it have both?

With a background in fine art and industrial design, Tshidzo is fascinated by pushing boundaries, especially when it comes to materials and shapes. “As an artist, I approached the products from a playful perspective, wondering what interesting things I could bring out of a specific material,” he says.