The Occasional Table

The table was created from two other tables acquired throught the freecycle network.  These were a standard metal frame computer desk and chair, primarily made of steel and plastic, and a large circular coffee table constituting of a wooden top and a wrought-iron tri-podular base.  The juxtaposition between the two table in their use, design and origin were appealing as their stories revealed themselves through their former owners.  

The computer desk was picked up in Sheffield, were it was originally purchased by the former owner.  It was well-used but brought new previous to my acquisition of it -  a cheap and functional piece of furniture, aesthetically colourless, materially and perceptually synthetic. 

The coffee table was acquired from Hathersage, the previous owners brought it in Bagnor, North Wales but the table has origins in India.  The hardwood top and weathered iron base engender an air of authenticity.  The surface is scarred and tempered through years of use and, though well crafted, the imperfections in its construction give it a character and charm missing in the computer desk. 

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The occasional tables is a multi-functioning device that responds to the user and the space in which it sits.  It performs as the coffee table it once but in response to its user the table undergoes a transformation, increasing its surface height and revealing piece drawers from under the tabletop.  It becomes a game board, a theatre of play.

The game is nine-mens-morris. An ancient strategy game that may have its beginnings in Egypt in 1400 BC, but more likely originated from Roman times where it is thought to have been introduced via trade routes.  It is a game of skill and cunning where the players place and move their peices in order to construct a network of aligned pieces, giving them the advantage by taking their opponents pieces.  The name Morris comes from the Latin word ‘merellus’, which means counter or gaming piece.  The design of the has been given sacred symbolic significance, to the Celts the centre represented the holy Mill or Cauldron – a symbol of regeneration, and radiating from this – the four cardinal directions, the four elements and the four winds.