Can a utilitarian material like MDF be reimagined as quiet luxury? Often used but seldom seen, it’s usually hidden behind veneers, disguised with paint, or tucked away where it won’t be noticed. In high-end design, it’s dismissed as cheap, merely functional, and unworthy of attention. Australian interior and product designer Georgina Davies challenges this hierarchy with Undressed, placing MDF unapologetically at the center. Through meticulous craftsmanship and contemporary geometries, she reveals the material’s understated beauty.
Comprised of just three pieces – a Tall Bookshelf, a Console, and a Nightstand – Undressed shows what MDF can become when handled with intention and precision. Produced in Byron Bay, Australia, the collection draws from Bauhaus-inspired principles, refined through a modernist lens to balance visual weight with subtle restraint. Davies was deliberate in the proportions and geometries of each piece, knowing they would be viewed from multiple angles and placed in different contexts.
MDF may be a humble material, but through a modern interpretation of French polishing, it shines in a new light. Each board is sealed with multiple thin coats of shellac, applied by fine spray and microfiber brush – a meticulous, labor-intensive process typically reserved for finer woods, and one that requires both patience and skill to achieve its luminous finish. The raw edges of the fiberboard appear darker than its surfaces, creating a distinct outline that highlights each piece’s form and reinforces its architectural clarity.
Rather than dressing MDF up as something it’s not, Davies elevates it, proving that value is shaped not by material hierarchies but by clarity of vision. Undressed is proof of that, encouraging us to look beyond the expected and discover beauty hidden in the most overlooked materials.
Georgina Davies
To learn more about the Undressed collection by Georgina Davies, visit georgegeorgegeorge.work.
Photography by Leif Prenzlau.
