This modular room partition was built using Mexican weaving methods and CNC-milling techniques!

When time-honored building methods from the past get woven into the design world of today, magic happens. The modern-day commitment to precision and technology sets the stage for more traditional designs to take on new heights. Else-Rikke Bruun, a Copenhagen-based designer, felt inspired in part by the classic weaving techniques of Mexico and looked to the advanced building method of CNC milling to create her interlaced, flexible room partition, Veneer.

Bruun introduces Veneer as, “a fusion of textile and wood, where the wood veneer is transformed into enlarged fibers in a textile weave.” The screen wall amounts to a cross-linked, wavelike pattern made up of interwoven birch plywood planks that were CNC milled, enhancing their flexibility. CNC milling essentially uses a computer-automated machine to control the cutting and rotating of construction material such as wood to ensure precisely cut and even building pieces.

Bruun’s screen wall is entirely made from birch wood– the interwoven planks forge their way between standing, vertical beams of birch wood, in a similar fashion to that of traditional Mexican weaving methods, to provide the partition with its wave-like pattern. Applying the same weaving methods as that of Mexican weaving to her screen wall, Veneer does not require any additional tools or screws.

To give Veneer its classic marbled finish, Bruun coated each plank with black oil, highlighting the grain of the wood to give it a naturally warm and smooth finish. While the screen walls seem small in width, they can be used as modules to join together with additional woven screen walls to span the length of any given room. The woven form of Veneer also provides an acoustic effect, giving the screen wall a sensuous and robust presence in any room.

Designer: Else-Rikke Bruun

Veneer is a fusion of textile and birch wood.

Requiring no tools or screws, Veneer relies on traditional weaving methods for construction.

Each plank of birch wood is coated in black oil for a marble-like finish.

After the planks are milled from CNC milling machines, the divider’s wavelike pattern is achieved through weaving.

The birch planks weave in between upright birch beams.

Bruun coats each plank in black oil before putting Veneer together.

Veneer has a modular structure to increase its width and span the length of a room.