Known for his minimalist yet meticulously crafted furniture, Tim Webber has built a reputation on precision, proportion, and timeless design. Now, the New Zealand designer turns his attention to a new form of craftsmanship in collaboration with Audi New Zealand. To mark the arrival of the A6 Avant e-tron, Audi’s first fully electric wagon, Webber has created an exclusive furniture collection inspired by the car’s sleek geometry and precision engineering. Comprising three exclusive pieces — the Rehn Lounge Chair, Matter Coffee Table, and Matter Tray — the collection is a study in contrasts: architectural yet tactile, technical yet timeless.
In conversation with Tim Webber
What excited you about aligning your design practice with Audi New Zealand?
I’ve always admired Audi’s commitment to precision, craft, and timeless design — qualities that closely align with our own approach at Tim Webber. It felt like a brilliant chance to explore a new territory where the worlds of automotive and furniture design intersect.
Audi’s design language is so refined — sculptural yet purposeful — and I saw this as an opportunity to challenge myself creatively, to translate that same sense of precision and performance into furniture form. It felt like a natural alignment between two brands that both value form, function, and enduring craftsmanship.
The A6 Avant e-tron has such a distinctive, sleek form. What aspects of its design inspired or influenced your approach to this collection?
Driving and studying the A6 Avant e-tron over several weeks really helped me understand its DNA. What stood out most was Audi’s balance between sharp geometry and soft curvature — every line has intent, yet there’s this gentle fluidity that gives the car such presence. That contrast became the foundation for the collection. The polished alloy legs of the coffee table, for instance, were directly inspired by the sculpted architecture of the A6 grille — strong and structural, yet softened by subtle radii.
The lounge chair’s form references the diffuser lines at the rear of the car, while maintaining comfort and warmth through its material mix. It was all about capturing that same interplay of tension and harmony you feel when you look at the car.
What role did texture and finish play in your design process?
Texture and finish were central to the story. I wanted to reflect that contrast between Audi’s polished, technical exterior and its beautifully tactile interior spaces. So, pairing hard materials like polished alloy and marble with soft, matte leather became symbolic of that relationship. We also explored new processes — polishing stainless steel to a mirror finish, CNC milling solid alloy — techniques we hadn’t used before, which was really exciting for me as a designer. Each material brought a different kind of challenge and reward, but ultimately it was about balance: using just two or three materials per piece to let the form speak without distraction.
This collection feels quite distinct from your usual work. What new territory did it allow you to explore as a designer?
This collaboration definitely pushed me, in the best way. I’ve never used a car as a design reference before, so finding a way to interpret something so dynamic into static form was a completely new challenge. It also encouraged me to experiment with metal, with reflective finishes and sculptural geometries. I wanted to explore precision and structure with this range as a nod to Audi’s engineering, while still maintaining warmth and usability.
The A6 Avant e-tron marks a new chapter for Audi as their first fully electric wagon. What excites you most about this evolution in design and technology?
I think what’s most exciting is that Audi’s evolution into electric doesn’t come at the expense of design integrity, and if anything, it’s enhanced it. They’ve embraced the possibilities of new technology while retaining that same emotional and human quality that defines their cars. As someone who’s now been driving an electric Audi myself, it’s incredible to experience that balance of performance, silence, and sophistication.
The collection is available to view at the Tim Webber showroom at 12 Nugent Street, Grafton or online at timwebberdesign.com. The A6 Avant e-tron is available to test-drive now at your local Audi dealership.
This article originally appeared in Fashion Quarterly’s Summer 2026 issue.
Photography: Holly Sarah Burgess
As told to Natalia Didovich
