VISIT THE KITCHEN OF CONTEMPORARY AESTHETIC FROM WOOD AND STAINLESS STEEL, ‘LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN’ BY PODIUM AND BARAZZA, A PART OF DAILY LIFE FOR BOTH FUNCTION AND THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE HOME
TEXT: RAN LIMTAWIN
PHOTO COURTESY OF PODIUM EXCEPT AS NOTED
(For Thai, press here)
We may be familiar with the saying that ‘the kitchen is the heart of the home.’ Today, the phrase feels more resonant than ever, as cooking, dining, and living areas increasingly dissolve into one continuous domestic landscape. No longer understood simply as a space for preparing food, the kitchen has become part of the atmosphere of daily life. The question, then, is not only how it looks, but how it feels to live with day after day, and what forms of value it offers to those who use it.
(left to right) Charunwat Maoleekulprairoj, Managing Director of Podium Home Center Co., Ltd., and Kittanun Sontijirawong, Chief Executive Officer of The Signature Brand Co., Ltd. | Photo courtesy of CUCINA GALLERIA
This consideration forms the starting point for LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN, the latest model from BLOC SMITH, a collection by PODIUM. The design evokes the warmth and tactility of real wood not through appearance alone, but through detail, proportion, material depth, and spatial quality. Developed through a collaboration between PODIUM, a Thai wood furniture brand, and Barazza, the Italian stainless steel specialist, the project brings together two material and technical traditions. Barazza has spent more than five decades developing worktops and complete kitchen systems, and its products are imported and officially represented in Thailand by CUCINA GALLERIA.
Appearing under the name PODIUM by Barazza on the worktop, the collaboration marks PODIUM as the first furniture brand in Southeast Asia to receive Barazza certification. More than a technical endorsement, this certification signals a convergence between the tactile value of real wood and an internationally recognized standard of stainless steel. It also places PODIUM within a broader design ecosystem, connecting the brand’s material sensibility to the evolving standards of contemporary kitchen design on an international level.
In LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN, PODIUM introduces wooden slatted cabinet fronts inspired by the Japanese woodworking technique of Kumiko, a meticulous craft known for bringing lightness, openness, and softness to architectural elements. Here, each slat is reduced to a thickness of just 5 millimeters, an unusually delicate application for solid wood in today’s market. Achieving this level of refinement requires the careful selection of American White Oak with a straight grain running consistently through each piece. Timber with curved or swirling grain is more prone to warping when planed to such a thin profile. The result is a cabinet front animated by a complex play of light and shadow, changing subtly throughout the day. A newly designed wooden handle is integrated into the slatted composition, allowing it to recede visually while maintaining tactile clarity in everyday use.
Photo courtesy of CUCINA GALLERIA
Photo courtesy of CUCINA GALLERIA
Barazza, meanwhile, contributes a made-to-measure stainless-steel worktop, developed specifically for each space. The sink, hob, and preparation area are brought together across a continuous surface, reflecting the logic of the Italian complete kitchen system, where functional efficiency and architectural coherence are considered together. Drawing on more than 50 years of expertise in stainless steel kitchen systems, Barazza regards the material as more than an industrial surface, seeing it as something capable of reflecting the character of its users and the way they live. This attitude toward stainless steel places particular emphasis on finish and expression. Barazza offers five finishes, each developed with its own texture, reflective quality, and material presence. Among them is the Vintage Finish, a hand-finished treatment crafted by skilled artisans who undergo five to seven years of training. Its distinctive texture reflects light with a softer quality, reduces the visibility of marks from everyday use, and gradually develops its own character alongside the owner’s way of life.
Another key detail is the idea of seamless integration, a principle Barazza has developed across its sinks, hobs, and worktops so that each element appears to merge into a visually resolved plane. The result is a kitchen that feels clean, easy to maintain, and coherent as an interior composition. It is a design approach that reduces the complexity of individual components in order to allow users to engage with the space in the most natural way possible. LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN therefore brings together two expressions of craftsmanship, stainless steel and solid wood, into a contemporary aesthetic that responds to both function and the atmosphere of the home.
Beyond its visual refinement, the cabinetry from PODIUM’s BLOC SMITH collection is realized with flexible functions that support storage, food preparation, cooking, and everyday use. It also considers the well-being of its users through a PU coating certified to Japan’s F4 Star standard, a high-level material standard concerned with indoor air quality and residential safety. The coating helps slow the discoloration of wood, can be cleaned with alcohol without leaving stains, and uses nanotechnology to preserve the tactile quality of solid wood without making the surface feel sealed off or overly coated. It also helps reduce the risk of harmful chemical emissions associated with Sick Building Syndrome, making it a healthier choice for long-term indoor living.
The design language of LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN begins with ‘linear,’ expressed through the way the eye follows the measured lines of the wooden slats, and ‘bound,’ the point at which materials meet in a seamless union between solid wood and finely crafted stainless steel.
The collection was first presented at Architect Expo 2026, where it was displayed as a new kitchen model within a setting that evoked the feeling of an inhabited home. Warm lighting and softly rounded furniture, including a circular table, were introduced to temper the rigidity of the lines, creating a space that felt warmer, more relaxed, and approachable. At the same time, the presentation drew the viewer’s gaze along a shifting play of light and shadow, changing with each angle of view, almost like a simulation of sunlight moving gradually through the interior over the course of the day.
Today, LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN is on view at the PODIUM showroom on Soi Sathorn 1, Bangkok, where it is presented at a scale and within a setting closer to an actual living space. Here, visitors can take in the design’s finer details and appreciate the precision of its making, best understood through touch. Those interested in learning more about Barazza, including the details of its complete kitchen system and the material qualities of stainless steel, can also visit the CUCINA GALLERIA showroom on Soi Sathorn 12.
Read more about LINEAR BOUND KITCHEN at podium.co.th
Visit the PODIUM showroom on Soi Sathorn 1, open daily from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
Location and contact details
Visit the CUCINA GALLERIA showroom on Soi Sathorn 12, open daily from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
Location and contact details