Gold Winner 2022 – MANGA Bench - Architecture Collection
Gold Winner of the Architecture & Design Collection Awards 2022

MANGA Bench

Design
Outdoor Furniture Design Built
Professional Category

Architect / Designer:

Enrique Mínguez Ros / Enrique Mínguez Martínez

Studio:

QZ Urban Furniture

Design Team:

Enrique Mínguez Ros / Enrique Mínguez Martínez

Copyright:

David Frutos

Country:

Spain
Urban elements contribute to giving cities a human scale, identity and collective meaning. The design of urban furniture must comply with three interrelated concepts: functionality, simplicity and emotionality, as well as being useful, durable and designed for the people. The design idea for the MANGA Bench starts from the maritime context, a place for which it has been designed, using technology and materials typical of nautical engineering. Inspired by marine life, it is capable of awakening emotions in urban and natural environments. A bench of elegant simplicity with organic shapes that not only fulfils the function of a seat but also provides an aesthetic value when it is placed in the urban space: seafronts, ports, squares, streets and boulevards. The purity of the lines and the roundness between planes of the MANGA Bench, reinforces the brightness and textures typical of fiberglass and concrete. When the bench is not occupied, its soft undulating shapes make it a sculptural element. Minimalist in design, its comfortable ergonomic profile and soft undulations invite contemplation and serenity. Available in two finishes: – Painted fiberglass with a thickness of between 8 and 14 mm. Available colours are gloss white, fluorescent green, light blue and anthracite grey. – Made in concrete, reinforced with very high performance fibers and great plasticity, which gives it great rigidity. Available colours are white and grey The fiberglass bench incorporates, at the bottom, two profiles of galvanized steel of 5 mm thickness, which are inserted in two rectangular plates of 200 x 40 x 5 mm, fixed to the pavement by four screws coated with an antioxidant protection. The materials used in the MANGA Bench are committed to sustainability and the development of pioneering technologies (fiberglass, fiber-reinforced concrete or mechanical recycling of plastic R-PET). Environmentally friendly materials with a real component of sustainability, circularity and safety. The MANGA Bench has taken into account its environmental impact during all the stages of its existence: extraction of raw materials, production, distribution, use, reuse, recycling and waste management. The piece replaces conventional reinforced concrete with fiber concrete, highlighting its durability. The MANGA Bench has been recognized with several Awards and has been exhibited at the Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de Murcia (COAMU). Murcia (Spain).

QZ Urban Furniture

QZ Urban Furniture is a design and production studio for urban and outdoor furniture. We always start from a clear commitment to high design pieces. We conceive this concept as a fundamental pillar in the creation of furniture, both for us and for our clients. Our main value is high design, a value that is accompanied by the execution of the pieces with the best technology and quality of the materials used, as well as a great commitment to the environment.

We encourage designers and architects to share their best projects with the rest of the world so as to inspire the next generation and gain global recognition.