At this year's New York City Design Week, a bold experimental platform pushed deeper into the world of industrial design. Teaming up with independent designer Rishi Assar, the collaboration unveiled a striking furniture collection built from reclaimed materials sourced directly from the streets of New York City.

Presented at Lichen, the collection transformed authentic Department of Transportation street objects and salvaged urban infrastructure into sculptural home pieces. Rather than disguising the materials' previous lives, the designers leaned into their imperfections — preserving scratches, weathering, industrial textures and city markings that tell the story of New York itself.

The result sits somewhere between collectible furniture, public art and street archaeology. Metal signage, reclaimed steel and construction fragments were reconstructed into benches, shelving and hybrid design objects that feel both raw and highly intentional. The project reflects a broader movement in contemporary design where discarded urban materials are elevated into luxury or gallery-worthy pieces.

The creative direction has long referenced municipal uniforms, utility aesthetics and industrial systems — and this collaboration feels like a natural extension of that visual language. Instead of translating workwear codes into garments, L.E.D. Studio channels the same energy into interiors, bringing the visual identity of New York streets directly into domestic spaces.

The showcase also reinforced how design week exhibitions are increasingly blurring the boundaries between fashion, architecture and furniture. Rather than presenting polished luxury objects, the Assar collaboration embraces urban decay, reuse and authenticity as core design principles.

The collection was displayed during NYC Design Week through a special showroom installation hosted by Lichen, a gallery-space known for championing experimental contemporary furniture and collectible design. (Instagram)