This circular object is by Jacob Cuesta Wolf, an Industrial Design student at Germany's Burg Giebichenstein University of Art & Design Halle.

Paired with these aluminum tubes…

…and some plywood, it becomes the basis for different pieces of furniture:

Wolf designed this Hulot system in the name of sustainability:

"Half of all bulky waste in Germany consists of furniture that could still be used. Currently we are talking about nearly 1.7 million tons, and the amount has been rising during the COVID pandemic."

"A new concept for the circular use of furniture hands producers the long-term responsibility for products and puts them in charge of repairs and refurbishing. Thus, the relationship between users, producers and the objects as such undergoes a fundamental change, leading to a sustainable use in which a product will not end up in the garbage once it has fulfilled its first function."

"This modular system shows how a new level of durability can be attained as the pieces of furniture can always be adapted and repaired. If requirements change, the furniture can easily be transformed as well: A chair becomes a table becomes a children's high chair becomes a chair again. It is all based on an innovative design which relies on a selection of similar pieces that can be assembled or disassembled according to need. The design makes use of three innocuous materials which either store CO2, are recyclable or consist of recycled materials to begin with. Therefore, the specific design not only stresses sustainable parameters but also demonstrates a new attitude to product development as such, as expressed in this scenario of circular use."