Metropolis: Outdoor Product Roundup
&Tradition’s Thorvald SC99
Published in Metropolis’s Products 2025 issue.
Beautiful, Inside and Out
With increasing awareness of biophilic design principles and how the outdoors can promote wellness, people are finally putting more thought into the design of both public and private outdoor zones, from pedestrian streetscapes and expansive plazas and parks to cozy residential backyards and garden patios. But it’s no longer enough to make these spaces more inviting and aesthetically appealing—there’s also increasing demand for improved comfort, environmental responsibility, and even wildlife conservation. The recently introduced products featured here are proof that outdoor-goods manufacturers are listening and responding.
Landscape Forms: Louis
A catenary luminaire designed for urban settings, Louis pays homage to legendary architect Louis Kahn with its modernist rectilinear structure, joined at the center by a gentle arc. The latter deftly conceals the fixture’s attachment to the cable, giving it an almost floating appearance. The aluminum housing, specifiable in 26- or 48-inch lengths, is offered in a white or gray powder-coat finish with a frosted or clear lens. As a full cut-off light, it doesn’t contribute to light pollution—which is thought to disrupt wildlife and ecosystems—and is, in fact, DarkSky International–approved.
&Tradition: Thorvald SC99
Space Copenhagen has expanded its Thorvald furniture collection for &Tradition with the SC99 dining table, which—like the rest of the series—channels the architecture of Denmark’s 1848-built Thorvaldsen’s Museum, for which it’s named. Its oblique, double-tubular-metal legs, for instance, evoke the repetitive, splayed linear detail framing the facade’s doorways. Along with the other pieces in this modern collection—lounge, arm, and stackable side chairs; cafe tables; and a side table—the SC99 is available in three colors and is composed of steel for recyclability.
Cassina: Esosoft Outdoor
A marriage of comfort and elegance, the Esosoft Outdoor collection, designed by Antonio Citterio, boasts an aesthetic that’s equal parts light, modern, and cozy—making it just as suitable for the living room and other indoor spaces. It comprises sofas and an armchair, each with a slim aluminum frame, a wicker basket–evoking shell, and soft, removable cushions, along with coordinating low tables with iroko-wood-slat tops. Sustainable attributes include cushions made partly with recycled PET wadding and steel bases that disassemble easily for recycling.
Gandía Blasco: Hos
An exploration into recycled PET fabrics led celebrated Japanese architect Kengo Kuma on a journey to create a series of textiles for Gandía Blasco’s rug division, Gan, which he then combined with wooden frames produced by the brand’s furniture arm to fashion a hammock-like deck chair and a coordinating footstool. Adding a cultural touch, his design uses Japanese interlocking joinery to both assemble the iroko-wood frames and attach the rug-like textiles.
Vestre: Tellus
Making strides is sustainability, Vestre is the first furniture manufacturer to use Swedish steel company SSAB’s 100 percent fossil-free steel with the launch of its Tellus bench. Designed by Emma Olbers, Tellus sports a streamlined design of thin steel sheets perforated to form ribs that echo the wood slats of conventional park benches. Measuring 59 1/2 inches wide by 29 inches deep, it’s available in all classic RAL colors.
Bromic: Tungsten Smart-Heat Electric
Ideal for those nippier evenings, this outdoor radiant heating unit is sleek and unobtrusive, ensuring comfort without detracting from a patio or deck’s design. Four heat outputs are available, from 2,000 to 6,000 watts, capable of covering areas from 65 to 160 square feet. The heater comes in a black or white finish with a honeycomb mesh screen and can be wall- or ceiling-mounted, or ceiling-recessed. To optimize energy use, it features an adjustable bracket that direct the heat more precisely.
Dedon: Caladio
The classic shell chair reimagined, Caladio presents a sculptural handwoven envelope slipped onto a frame of CNC-cut teak sourced from certified plantations. But the chair’s appeal also lies in what can’t readily be seen: The woven shell is crafted from Dedon’s proprietary EcoCycle Fiber, a polyethylene material composed mostly of renewable plant-based materials and produced with low-carbon renewable biofuel.