Gregor Jenkin produces good-looking furniture. As a designer, he uses unexpected materials – or perhaps just regular materials in unexpected ways.

It may have something to do with his background which is best described as eclectically cohesive. After studying industrial engineering and architecture, Gregor worked as a prop maker for Ralph Lauren in London. His designs bring together these experiences, resulting in pieces that are as structurally impressive and precise as they are quirky and tongue-in-cheek.

His famous Cape Table (made famous when The Conran Shop snapped it up for its big launch in London and New York) is a playful take on an old classic: a traditional-style table made not from wood but flat-packed steel. Edgy in the true sense of the word, the van die Stel range is an arresting combination of inviting curves and uncompromising hard edges. It’s also a weighty collection: some of the tables tip the scales at 255kg! So can we refer to Gregor Jenkin as a design heavyweight then?

He’d be the last to make such a presumption. Gregor talks of his work as 3D satire – occasionally political, often humorous and always deeply thoughtful, his products “irreverent but sophisticated, accessible yet strange.”

And the pieces coming out of the Gregor Jenkin Studio are refreshingly unexpected. He transforms everyday, humdrum objects into eye-catching furniture and (functional) designer products. His Bowl Light, for instance, is constructed from enamel bowls, while the Industrial Revolution collection features everyday objects (piping, spirit levels) as functional decorative pieces (a vase, mirror frame).

Infrastructure is about finding the intrinsic beauty in functional municipal objects. Overhead street lights, telephone poles, even the bridge between Jozi [Johannesburg] and Pretoria – each has been turned into a surprisingly attractive standing lamp, coat stand and bench respectively.

But for me, Walk around the Block really encapsulates Gregor’s work. A bit of an in-joke for Joburgers (it’s the closest most will get to actually walking around their own block!), it’s witty, precise and gorgeous. Joburg has never looked so good.

Gregor Jenkin Studio has recently opened in Cape Town: 84 Shortmarket Street, Cape Town. Check out www.gregorjenkin.com.