ABOUT

Terry Aidoo presents Kabila, a furniture collection inspired by the social and cultural significance of the traditional African courtyard. Comprising a coffee table and accompanying stool, the collection explores how furniture can foster gathering, belonging and shared experience through contemporary design.

The name Kabila, meaning clan or tribe in both Swahili and Arabic, evokes the idea of identity shaped not only through bloodlines but through shared experiences, traditions, and collective memory. Drawing inspiration from the courtyard as a place of encounter, storytelling, celebration, and exchange, the collection reinterprets these spaces of togetherness into a family of sculptural wooden objects.

Concept of the Kabila Collection

Across many African cultures, the courtyard functions as the heart of communal life. Positioned between private and public Space, it serves as a place where generations gather, meals are shared, stories are told, and traditions are passed from one generation to the next. More than an architectural element, the courtyard represents a framework for connection, belonging, and cultural continuity.

Kabila translates this idea into furniture.

The coffee table becomes a contemporary interpretation of the communal center, while stools are conceived as individual elements surrounding it, reflecting the spatial relationship found within traditional courtyard settings. Together, the pieces create a landscape that encourages gathering, conversation, participation and exchange.

Design Elements

At the heart of Kabila Collection is the coffee table, embedded within its surface is a recessed circular detail referencing the Eritrean coffee ceremony, a ritual centered on hospitality, conversation, and togetherness. More than a decorative gesture, this element acknowledges the role of shared rituals in creating community, transforming the table into a symbolic space for encounter, reflection and exchange.

The table also incorporates a carved interpretation of Oware, one of the oldest and most widely played board games in West Africa, traditionally played across generations. Oware serves as a tool for learning, storytelling, strategy and social interaction. 

Accompanying the table is the stool, which draws inspiration from traditional seating forms in the Benin Kingdom, in present-day Nigeria. Historically, Edo stools carried both practical and symbolic significance, serving as objects of status and identity. Rather than replicating these forms directly, Kabila reinterprets them through a contemporary lens.

Material and Craftsmanship

Kabila is handcrafted from solid sapele wood, chosen for its durability, rich grain, and natural warmth. The collection combines traditional woodworking techniques with contemporary fabrication processes, resulting in pieces that balance precision, craftsmanship and material authenticity.

About Terry Aidoo

Terry Aidoo is a multidisciplinary designer working across furniture, interiors, installations and research. His practice explores the intersection of culture, community and belonging, translating narratives of heritage, ritual, and collective memory into contemporary design.

Through a multidisciplinary approach, Aidoo creates work that bridges craftsmanship, storytelling and social impact. Drawing from African cultural traditions and material histories, his projects seek to reimagine how objects and spaces can nurture connection, preserve identity, and shape more meaningful futures.