NEW LIFE BORN FROM THE PAST
For over 70 years, Kay Bojesen has brought the smiles of the iconic Monkey to life at home. Since then, new family members have joined and in 2021 another member was introduced: Reworked Monkey. Reworked Monkey has been designed with one purpose in mind: To use our material with responsibility and care. Reworked Monkey is made from residual wood that would otherwise have gone to waste. It breathes new life into both the heritage and the wood.
MONKEY UPCYCLING
The Reworked Anniversary Monkey is a special edition of the iconic Monkey made of leftover wood. It comes in mini, small, medium and large sizes, of which small, medium and large are anniversary editions. The special edition has a 70th anniversary stamp on the paw and comes in a limited edition wooden anniversary box.
Like his brothers in the monkey family, Reworked Monkey is made to a high quality and with great craftsmanship. The re-worked Monkey is based on the principle of upcycling, and the goal is to use the resources that would otherwise have gone to waste. This means that the monkeys are made from different types of residual wood. The wood is thus cut off or scrapped in relation to its original purpose.
WHAT TYPES OF WOOD IS THE MONKEY MADE OF?
Reworked Monkey is made from different types of wood, where we use teak, walnut, oak, ash, maple, limba, mahogany, etc. We cannot guarantee which types of wood each monkey is made of due to a limited supply of residual wood.
The processing of Reworked Monkey is considerably more demanding than the well-known monkey in teak and limba, which is turned from one piece of wood. Here, many pieces of wood need to be adapted and put together, and this places high demands on both the craftsmanship and the quality.
CRAFTSMANSHIP OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY
Although the Monkey has a friendly and intuitive simplicity about it, the two-tone design in dark teak and light limba wood is composed of 31 individual parts. A complexity of craftsmanship that we continue in Reworked Monkey.
For us, the meticulous upcycling process is a mark of great respect and love: Not just for the Monkey as an iconic classic, but for wood as a resource in the Danish design tradition. Today, Kay Bojesen’s designs are mainly produced in FSC® certified wood, while the upcycled member of the Monkey family focuses on zero waste and using the resources that would otherwise have been wasted.
You can't help but want to touch Reworked Monkey's soft, rounded body. The individual rods are processed and glued together, and the body can then be turned in one piece. This results in a unique pattern of wood types that are distinctive for this monkey. After turning, holes are made in the body for mounting the arms and legs.
After turning, the body is honed by hand on a brush sander with two types of sandpaper to ensure the monkey's tactile surface. The monkey's soft body and tactility make it a welcome friend in the family.
The monkey’s arms and legs are made up of two pieces of wood and then turned as one piece of wood. Only when the monkey is assembled are the paws mounted.
When Kay Bojesen designed the iconic monkey in 1951, the long, swinging arms were not just intended for hanging from shelves in living rooms and children’s rooms, but rather for children to hang their hats and scarves on in e.g. the hallway. The monkey was first produced as a piece of children’s furniture; a
children’s coat hook that could hang down from the adults’ hooks at child’s height.
Kay Bojesen’s mantra was that 'the line should smile', and that’s what it does in all his designs - and this monkey is no exception. All the soft and organic shapes of the monkey will make you smile, but it is his face in particular that will warm your heart.
The monkey’s face consists of three wooden elements: a head, an eye-board and a mouth that are glued together by hand, adding life and personality to each monkey.
Before assembling the monkey, all the finished wooden parts are oiled with rapeseed oil. Every single monkey is assembled with the utmost care, and it is not by chance how the different body parts, arms and legs are paired together. With extensive experience, arms and legs are sorted so that the right ones are selected for each body – this is what brings the wood to life and gives the monkey its soul and personality.
The monkey’s arms and legs are attached to the body with small elastics and seams that ensure the limbs are movable and the monkey can sit, hang and stand – there is no end to how the anniversary monkey can live in your home.
