W̱SÁNEĆ School Board approached Designer Kirk Van Ludwig to create a boardroom table that would pay homage to their history, culture, and forward outlook distinctly based on the values of the Saanich people. 

ȽÁU, WELṈEW̱ Tribal School is located on the Saanich Peninsula near the small community of Brentwood Bay, fifteen kilometres north of Victoria, British Columbia. Nestled in a forest setting on Tsartlip Reserve, the school serves the Saanich People on four reserves and surrounding communities of Tsartlip, Pauquachin, Tseycum and Tsawout.

The school’s name is derived from the name of the Saanich People’s sacred mountain, ȽÁU, WELṈEW̱. It is a spiritual place where the Saanich people found refuge after the great flood. Today it is a place that offers respite and wisdom. The school is a haven, a place for Saanich children to know their history and find a clear vision of their future.

For the table Van Ludwig chose Vancouver Island Alder as it is a species in abundance but often overlooked at a commercial value.  The Alder tree has an important role in our forest, it acts as a protector to Western Red Cedar and Douglas Fir trees.  The tree has important nitrogen-fixing capabilities, its roots enable it to replenish nitrogen in the soil.  Alder trees are often planted in rotation with Douglas Firs to reduce the incidence of parasitic laminated root rot in Douglas Fir forests.  

 *Thank you to Gabriel Ross for the Tom Dixon Puck cocktail glasses and Stelton Vacuum Jugs.

“Alder trees provide shelter for younger faster growing conifer trees growing underneath their protective canopy, and with a quick growth cycle – 50 years or so, it seems a fitting environment akin to elders looking after children”, says Van Ludwig.

The unique table features artwork from one of the elders from years by gone.  The Autonomous Furniture team torched the CNC carving to further the story of life cycle in the forest.  Along the seams of the table are engraved strips of 65% recycled paper composite material in matte black.  This symbolizes progress and innovation. 

The Autonomous Furniture team is honoured to have crafted this boardroom table for the W̱SÁNEĆ School Board. May the team have many inspiring collaborations around it long into the future!

The future of work is now. We're seeing an influx of companies working the hybrid model, or even a full return to the office after the last three years of the pajama wearing WFH life. Seeking flowing teamwork, never has the meeting table been so important to evoke passion, inspiration, and collaboration.

Autonomous Boardroom features:

• Personalization with logos, font, or culture 
• A/V Power and discreet cable management incorporation
• Tailored sizing with many forms of extendable versions

photo above is courtesy of And-Co in Vancouver, a full-service flexible workspace including our CB Walnut table with AV modifications.

The Benefits of a Well-Designed Office

Improved Communication: With a designated meeting room, employees can communicate more effectively and efficiently without distractions or interruptions from their regular workspace. This can lead to better decision-making and problem-solving. AV components such as HDMI cable grommets and AC power outlets for charging can be customized to our meeting tables.

Enhanced Creativity: Meeting rooms provide a space for brainstorming and idea-sharing, which can lead to innovative solutions for business challenges. A well-designed boardroom table can also foster a sense of professionalism and inspire creativity. Our Kaiwa meeting table (shown above) inspires creativity in its unique shape, as no one is the head of the table, everyone is angled towards each other.

Better Collaboration: A boardroom table provides ample space for multiple team members to sit together and collaborate. This can help break down silos and encourage cross-functional collaboration – and even increased productivity (say goodbye to 50 email chains when you just work it out in a meeting)!

Let us help elevate your office. One of a kind, tailored, built with soul here on Vancouver Island, shipping worldwide.

The Kai cubes are an Autonomous Furniture essential. Brutally simple in form while adding warmth and a piece of outside to the inside at once. Used as a coffee table set, end table, bench, or even tailored as a sculpture stand, the Kai cubes add a piece of Vancouver Island appeal.

And now, for a limited time, they are 15%.

What You Get:

• Each piece is unique and has small checks and cracks. Our craftspeople carefully burn out, sand, edge every inch to ensure a perfectly smooth surface and avoid snag points. But with any natural product like this, it can move over time.
• Corked bottoms to ensure no floor scratches and a slight reveal for a shadow line with the floor, easy to vacuum around also.
• Solid Douglas Fir, sourced sustainably by Autonomous from a private family-owned wood lot on Vancouver Island, Canada.
• Kai cubes can also be purchased individually here as a side table.

Specifications:

• 30.5" L x 30.5" W x 16" H.
• 15% off - Orders prior to November 30th could be ready for Christmas.

Order your Kai Cube coffee table set now!

*Discount will be applied at Checkout. Shipping via FedEx Ground.

While we strive to design and manufacture furniture to benefit the circular economy, one of our focuses is our material sourcing. Our furniture’s origins are rooted by the forests of British Columbia and while some of our wood species expand to across North America, we have recently invested in a very local wood species that we’re excited to launch.

Think of a renewable resource that has a short lifespan, rarely living beyond 50 years, that nourishes the soil it leaves behind, grown right here on Vancouver Island? Alder from Vancouver Island is all that yet is often discarded to the pulp mills. We have found it makes stunning furniture pieces, with a consistent even grain that finishes beautifully in a whitewashed Scandinavian appearance.

What makes Alder such a renewable resource? Well, for starters, it has important nitrogen-fixing capabilities, its roots enable it to replenish nitrogen in the soil, making Alder a great service provider to the forest. Alder trees are often planted in rotation with Douglas Fir to reduce the incidence of parasitic laminated root rot in Douglas Fir forests. That’s not all, Alder trees provide shelter for younger faster growing conifer trees growing underneath their protective canopy. What a wonderful concept – beautiful Alders protecting the young Douglas Firs as they grow in our coastal rainforests!

Our Ban Collection is perfectly paired in Alder. We love the meeting of the collection's dramatic design aesthetic and sustainable local wood sourcing. Be sure to visit our showroom to see the stunning Alder pieces for yourself.

We’ve been giving some thought lately to how the world around us is operating, a conundrum of robotic automation to fulfil orders in record breaking times (lookin’ at you Amazon) while facing furniture shipping delays like never seen before.  All the while one could argue, creating more waste than a product of substance. 

Sometimes I think we’re operating in our own world, perhaps just reveling in the creations that come from our hands-on approach. Whatever way you want to look at it, every step of our process to deliver furniture is of an analogue nature, intentionally built to last, while keeping our impact on the earth low.

When I walk into the Autonomous workshop, I see our team crafting furniture pieces with pride and purpose. There’s a level of comradery amongst our team – nurtured by the collaborating methods on how best to construct a particular piece. The creativity that each of our craftsmen gets to use daily while sharing their knowledge of their craft in person, is the antithesis of zoom or working from home.

It’s one of the reasons we like to do our own local deliveries – it gives our team a chance to complete the circle of the furniture piece they participated in creating through to its placement in our client’s home. Usually, there’s photos being snapped, with satisfaction and pride over their hours of meticulous labour being poured into the piece, the client’s thoughts and emotions are digested all the while allowing it to shine in its new home. A connection is often made right there – if it wasn’t already from their visits to our space – where our client sees the level of commitment our craftsmen have for the furniture they create.

Shop photos by Brit Kwasney Photo.

How do we share the buzzing of our workshop, and collaboration that goes into our furniture through to our clients abroad? That’s always on our minds. Our beloved local clients get a chance to peak at the happenings in our space – saws and sanders buzzing, design prototypes and drawings on display, next to our finished furniture pieces in the showroom.

We welcome you to join in on ‘our own world’, if you live afar, and many of our clients do, Kirk is always open to talking you through the process.  Our guys are always curious who you are, where the pieces are going – not just geographically but where in the space.  We are open for business, we go to great lengths to think sustainably, we will build you a piece with intention of lasting a lifetime, and as it turns out, we’ll get it to you faster than that shipping container gets to port.