Hilla Shamia casts tree trunks with molten aluminium to form furniture
Tel Aviv-based Hilla Shamia Design Studio's Wood Casting collection is made by inserting lengths of tree trunk into a mould and filling the spaces with molten metal (+ slideshow).
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_5.jpg)
Tables, stools and benches in the furniture range are constructed by splitting full-length tree trunks to make wooden planks.
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_9.jpg)
The planks are then inserted into a mould, which provides the form of the piece of furniture.
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_10.jpg)
Molten aluminium is poured over the wood, filling the leftover spaces in the mould and completing the piece.
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
The heat of the metal burns the edges of the wood and creates a line of charcoal between the two materials.
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_41.jpg)
"The casting process is like a drama, accompanied by high heat, flames and smoke," Shamia told Dezeen. "This drama produces a third material – coal."
"The dark coal narrates the love story between the [wood and aluminium], emphasising their initial meeting, outlining a sense of continuation, and maintaining a sense of flow even when the two materials are solid and strong, just like the dynamics between an elderly couple."
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_7.jpg)
The two frequently-combined contrasting materials were the starting point for the concept.
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_25.jpg)
"Wood is an organic material, which is influenced negatively by fire and heat; it may burn completely," said the designer. "Metal, on the other hand, is a natural resource, which is very durable against heat – it simply changes its state, turning from solid to liquid."
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_4.jpg)
"Using this special technology of casting metal into wood, I was able to originate completely new connections and geometrical adjournments between the two."
![Cast Aluminum and Tree Trunk Furniture by Hilla Shamia Studio](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Cast-Aluminium-and-Tree-Trunk-Furniture-by-Hilla-Shamia-Studio_dezeen_468_18.jpg)
The collection is a development of Shamia’s 2012 graduate project from the Department of Industrial Design at Holon Institute of Technology.