“Sweet Ivory” Sugar Cane Stool (2024)
Exhibited at the 2025 London Design Festival as part of the Kaalchara showcase by OSA Studio.
Goal:
The goal of the “Sweet Ivory” stool was to explore how Sugar cane waste; specifically the plant body and its fiborous by-products could be repositioned as a regenerative material for furniture design, rather than being discarded after sugar extraction.
Rooted in the Tanzanian agricultural context, the project aimed to:
Rooted in the Tanzanian agricultural context, the project aimed to:
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Challenge the sugar-centric lifecycle of sugar cane by extending its material value.
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Investigate sugar cane as a structural and aesthetic material within contemporary furniture.
- Celebrate East African craftsmanship, translating traditional forms and making practices into a modern design language.
- Propose a new model of regenerative craftsmanship, where natural materials, culture, and sustainable production coexist.
The stool acts as both a functional object and a provocation, using sugar cane as an unconventional material to question how agricultural systems, craft, and industrial design can intersect to redefine sustainability and organic material value.
Challenges:
Working with sugar cane presented a series of material, structural, and process-driven challenges:
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Material unpredictability
- Sugar cane grows non-linearly, with varying diameters and internal fibres, making standardisation difficult and requiring irregularity to be embraced rather than controlled.
Moisture & sucrose content
- Retained sugars created a balance challenge: over-drying caused brittleness, while insufficient drying compromised strength.
Structural limitations
- Early bagasse-based composites proved too brittle for load-bearing use, shifting focus to the cane body itself.
Craft vs engineering tension
- Sticky, caramelised processes resisted clean industrial methods, reframing the project between precision engineering and hands-on craft.
Solution/Results
The final outcome is a fully realised sugar cane stool that demonstrates how agricultural by-products can become structurally viable, culturally grounded furniture.
Sugar cane was used as the primary structural element, with its natural irregularities informing the form rather than being suppressed. Fourteen dried sugar cane legs are arranged into a U-shaped configuration and reinforced by a concealed steel rod, achieving load-bearing stability while preserving material integrity.
Twine binding and sugar cane linkages reference traditional East African making practices, while an upcycled Tanzanian kanga textile softens the seat and embeds cultural narrative.
Beyond the artefact, Sweet Ivory proposes a speculative yet practical model for unconventional sugar cane use, suggesting pathways where organic material can support regenerative craft economies and sustainable furniture aesthetics.