Desafinado Bancu by Cass Saldanha is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award di Bronzu in Disignu di Mubilia Competition Category.

BronzuMubilia· 2026

Desafinado Bancu

by Cass Saldanha

Client: SAL+Co

A' Design Award di Bronzu Winner in Mubilia Category

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Verified Award Winner

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View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

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The Design

About Desafinado Bancu

Desafinado hè un bancu cuncipitu cum'è un studiu di equilibriu è di ritenuta. A forma seguita a chjarezza scandinava, cù linee dritte è geometria simplice, cumbinata cù u pesu è a direttezza di u mudernisimu brutalistu brasilianu. E pruporzioni basse invitanu à una pustura rilassata, è a spartera trà u sedile è u spinale crea una tensione visuale. Un sportu deliberatu equilibra u sedile è u spinale in direzzioni opposte. U bancu hè fattu guasi interamente di quercia europea cù una tinta nera, è un cuscinu finu cusgitu à manu in coghju di sella brasilianu cumpleta u sedile.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award di Bronzu

Desafinado Bancu hè un vincitore di u premiu A' Design Award di Bronzu, una ricunniscenza assai prestigiosa attribuita à i disegni eccellenti chì si distinguenu per a creatività, l'ingegnu è l'acutezza. I vincitori di Bronzu sò artefatti largamente abili è sorprendentemente creativi chì autenticanu a vasta sperienza, l'imaginazione è l'ingegnosità di i so disegnatori. Si aspetta chì Desafinado Bancu sia un oggettu assai apprezzatu, ammiratu è caru, rimarchevulemente prufessiunale è innuvatore. Stu disegnu vincitore di u premiu A' Design Award di Bronzu incorpora e migliori pratiche di l'arte, di a scienza, di u disegnu è di a tecnulugia è hè eccellente per l'attinzione à i detaglii. Desafinado Bancu suddisfa splendidamente i bisogni, tocca i disideri, incanta i sentimenti è chjama a curiusità.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: The Desafinado bench is conceived as a study in balance and restraint. Rooted in Scandinavian design, it relies on simple, straight lines and clear geometry. The low-lying proportions invite a relaxed posture, while the split between back and seat creates a visual tension. An intentional overhang balances the extended seat and back to opposite directions, turning structure into function.
Dimensions & Packaging: Materials:
Black Stained Oak
Seat in saddle leather

Dimensions:
Width: 130 inches or 39624 mm
Depth: 16 inches or 4876.8 mm
Height: 22 inches or 6705.6 mm
Seat Height: 12 inches or 3657.6 mm
Tags: Bench, Brazilian, wood, Balance, furniture
Production Technology: The bench is built almost entirely from a single material: European oak. Finished with a black stain, the wood emphasizes grain, mass, and shadow. This restrained material choice reinforces the clarity of the design, allowing form, proportion, and structure to define the piece without distraction.
The bench is complemented with a thin, hand-stitched seat cushion upholstered in authentic Brazilian saddle leather forced from local small business.
Inspiration: The piece draws from Scandinavian clarity, but it is grounded in Brazilian brutalist modernism. Its forms are direct and architectural rather than delicate or refined. The bench avoids excessive polish, embracing weight, presence, and material honesty. This subtle roughness distinguishes it from Japanese minimalism and reinforces its brutalist character.
Project Duration: Conceived in Miami in 2022, the project evolved through an intensive four-month prototyping phase and reached its final form in August of that year. The bench exists as a true one-of-one piece; all remaining prototypes were deliberately destroyed upon completion, reinforcing its singularity.
Operation Flow: Beyond simple seating, the Desafinado Bench invites multiple uses: a surface to recline or stretch, a platform for books and objects, or an architectural element that works as a space divider or low table. It shifts easily between function and presence, adapting to the way the body and the room engage with it.
Patents: Copyrights belong to Cass Saldanha, 2022.
This design is available for reproduction. Please contact the Designer if you have interest in discuss intellectual property and licensing the rights.
Image Credits: Cassiano Saldanha