Nguyen decided to make her piece from American cherry, hard maple and cherry and selected contrasting timbers for the pins in the joints. ‘Wood is my favourite material,’ she says. ‘In Vietnam we never work with cherry but I think it’s an attractive material because of its texture and its warm colour.’ The red oak and maple, meanwhile, provide a pleasing counterpoint. ‘I chose the three different types of wood because of their colour differences. By randomly using two of the species for the pins and another for the rest for the stool, users can explore the different timbers when they unstack each one.’