A High-Octane Fusion of Automotive and Interior Design
At NYCxDesign 2025, art and design collective MSCHF unveiled a bold and unconventional furniture collection crafted entirely from real Mercedes-AMG car parts. Titled “Not for Automotive Use,” the exhibit merges luxury automotive components with sculptural, conceptual furniture—resulting in pieces like a loveseat with working headlight armrests and a trash can activated by car pedals.
A Studio-Driven Exhibition
Displayed atop plinths in MSCHF’s Greenpoint, Brooklyn studio—which opened to the public for the first time since its founding in 2019—the collection features eleven hybrid works including:
- Furniture
- Accessories
- Clothing
- An air freshener
Each item humorously blurs the line between function and spectacle, vehicle and home.
Key Pieces in the Collection
- Couch with Headlights: A loveseat that integrates fully operational headlights into its armrests, making the act of sitting down feel like stepping into a high-performance vehicle.
- Seatbelt Floor Lamp: A triangular floor lamp where the light turns on only after buckling its seatbelt arm.
- Triple Headrest Chair: A lounge-style seat crafted from three fused car headrests and an exposed yellow piping frame.
- Shelving Unit with Seatbelts: A structural piece where stretched seatbelts act as visual and functional elements.
- Trash Can with Car Pedals: A bin you open by stepping on actual Mercedes car pedals.
- BBQ Grill with AMG Grate: Featuring a large Mercedes logo and functional grates created from a real car grill.
Inspiration and Process
MSCHF co-chief creative officer Kevin Wiesner shared that the collection began as a “design exercise” inspired by their visit to the AMG headquarters in Affalterbach, Germany. There, they encountered stripped-down performance cars, sparking ideas about recontextualization. The work also channels Milanese design legend Achille Castiglioni, known for creatively integrating found objects into his functional art.
“We wanted a balance of furniture types,” Wiesner said, “but also to prioritise the physical actions we had the most fun with when playing with the pieces.”
Unlike traditional upcycling, the collection uses new AMG parts, focusing on imaginative misuse rather than sustainability or recycling.
Context Over Function
While some pieces—like the BBQ grill—are technically usable, MSCHF hasn’t tested them extensively yet. The team’s emphasis was on the conceptual transformation of high-end mechanical parts into household objects, playing with viewer expectations and context.
Why It Matters
The “Not for Automotive Use” collection serves as a tongue-in-cheek commentary on luxury, branding, and the absurd potential of everyday actions—like buckling a seatbelt to turn on a lamp. It also reflects MSCHF’s broader ethos: provocatively remixing pop culture, design, and technology.
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