Design in Focus: Wiid Design’s Captivating Artisanal Furniture

You may know Wiid Design for its distinctive cork furniture, ceramic-topped tables, lighting and collectable objects, but the studio’s work extends well beyond a single material or signature style. Founded by Laurie Wiid van Heerden and based in Observatory, Cape Town, Wiid Design operates between art, design and making, with a practice rooted in material exploration, craftsmanship and original thinking.

Artisanal soul

A self-taught designer, with a background in industrial design, Laurie developed his skills through early hands-on experience, including work in a foundry, an apprenticeship under a carpenter and time assisting South African sculptor Wim Botha. “Those formative experiences gave me a deep respect for materials, process and craftsmanship that continues to shape my work today,” he says.

Laurie established Wiid Design in 2013 and has built a reputation for work with longevity, tactility and emotional presence. The studio has received numerous accolades, including the Maker To Market Award, the Production Excellence Award, two Best Lighting Design awards, the ImpACT Award, the BRAVE Award, Sustainable Designer of the Year, and most recently the Advancement Award at Cape Town Furniture Week x VISI in 2026.

The studio’s bespoke commissions, hospitality projects and collaborative works, many of them site-specific or privately commissioned, can be seen in projects for clients such as Nando’s, La Motte, Spier, Singita and JNcQUOI. And its limited-edition furniture, sculptural objects and collectable pieces continue to evolve through ongoing prototyping, technical development and hand-finishing in the Observatory studio.

Design ethos

There is a serious playfulness to Wiid’s work, expressed through a balance of rounded and angular forms, unexpected detailing, texture and bold use of colour. “We work across a wide range of materials and processes, and try not to be constrained by a fixed signature shape, scale or narrow material palette,” says Laurie. “Instead, the studio functions as a constantly evolving machine.”

He has become known for advancing the technical and aesthetic possibilities of cork, one of the most sustainable materials in the world, valued for its lightness, resilience and tactile warmth. While cork remains central to the studio’s identity, it is often combined with ceramics, steel, terrazzo, glass or stone to create distinctive mixed-material works. The studio’s cork-based output spans collectible furniture and lighting, as well as smaller homeware pieces including ice buckets, wine coolers, trays and tableware.

The ceramics, produced in-house, add another dimension, ranging from sculptural forms and vessels to tiled surfaces and furniture components, with glaze and firing contributing to the final character of each piece. Alongside table tops and seating elements, the studio also produces vases, containers and more playful objects such as turtle and tortoise shells, fish, nautilus shells and tiles inspired by the French canelé dessert.

Diverse ideas

Wiid Design’s furniture draws on a wide range of cultural, material and historical references. The Tonga Collection of cork seating and side tables references African headrests, while the Meraki Collection draws from West African Senufo sculpture, combining cork with timber. Sesotho cultural references appear in the Bodulo Collection through graphic detailing.

Elsewhere, Midcentury Modern influences appear in ceramic diner-style foldaway tables and foldable steel bistro tables and chairs with tiled or travertine surfaces. Memphis lights reference a 1980s design movement, and a bold glass-and-cork chair-and-table set, finished in a custom blue, introduces a subtle nod to Mexican visual language.

Angled and fluted glassware designed by Wiid is produced by Ngwenya Glass in Eswatini, and the studio has also designed two planter collections for Indigenus, Soma and Terra, both of which combine concrete and timber elements in sculptural forms.

The bench range is available in a variety of materials, including timber, terrazzo, concrete, cork and steel. Wiid also works with local artists on one-off pieces. What began with Lionel Smit and Atang Tshikare has since expanded to include benches produced with Conrad Botes, Tafadzwa Tega, John Murray and Lee-Ann Heath, among others. “It keeps evolving and constantly pushes us into new conversations, new forms and new ways of making,” says Laurie.

Unveiled at the recent Cape Town Furniture Week, the new Massa Forma table collection – monolithic architectural forms made of cork offset by refined ceramic-tile tops – captures the material-led thinking and “complexity behind the scenes” – where testing, fabrication precision and hand-finishing converge.

A visit to Wiid Design’s HQ in Observatory will gain you entry into a world of imagination, an array of fantastical and whimsical artistry, and the opportunity to add a prized collectable to your home.

Showroom & studio 15 Baker Street, Observatory, Cape Town
Opening times By appointment only
Monday – Thursday, 8am – 5pm; Friday until 3pm
Contact 021 447 2512, info@wiiddesign.co.za

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