AHEC’s collaboration with renowned designer Martino Gamper began over a decade ago with the Infinity Bench for the London Design Festival, which promoted thermally modified American hardwood species and has since received significant press attention. Gamper also contributed to AHEC’s Legacy project in 2019 with his Musical Shelf, crafted from red oak.

His latest piece, a desk made from low-grade American cherry, showcases the wood’s natural characteristics with a unique, collaged surface of smaller timber sections. Celebrating natural knots and colour variations often excluded from high-end furniture, the desk exemplifies Gamper’s commitment to the material's full potential. He shared his connection with cherry:

“I have fond memories of cherry in my apprenticeship times in the 80s. We used it quite a lot, and it was one of the first woods that I really got to know. It’s amazing as before it’s oiled or finished, it’s quite pale, and as soon as you put a coat of oil on it, it really comes to life, radiating warmth and a beautiful orangey pink colour.”

Gamper’s new cherry desk was featured in Before, After & Beyond, the first comprehensive retrospective of his career, displayed in London in October. AHEC plan to continue this narrative around lower grades with Martino and other designers during 2025.