Design & Architecture Diary

The idea was to form a sitting and storage area as simple as possible without adding any layer or useless ornaments. In order to keep the furniture piece as plain as possible I worked with paper and the form came up from foldings and cuts of one plain infinite surface. I benefit from the cubic forms of origami and created a storage area as a shelf right behind the chair. The transparent material choice emphasizes on the pure statement of the design. The smooth texture of the fiber-glass plastic as a material choice expose the fluidity of the unit. Due to its simplicity, I think this unit can fit anywhere perfectly; school library, museums, kids room, hotel lobby, waiting rooms… Below, you will find my design process from the end till the initial concept.

Three weeks ago, I was asked to design a "sit+store" unit. As a starting point, I worked with a plain paper to search a form. The idea to design a furniture piece with only one infinite surface came up while I was looking Katarzyna Kobro's design.

While I was collecting Kobro's experimental works in my sketch-book I also found out about Sophia Vyzoviti and her "Super Surfaces" work.

Here are some extracts of my sketchbook where you can see my origami and paper folding findings.

As you can see at the last page of my sketch-book some ideas about my design concept was already formed. I was thinking of cellphone charging station as a storage element. However the idea led me to a book shelf which can be used like a pocket beside a sitting chair.

INITIAL CONCEPTS

I started to experiment some of the folding examples you see above.

I like this form as my initial sitting concept.

The latest form. Behind view.

ERGONOMIC CONSIDERATION

At this stage, the sitting unit seems comfortable due to its folding system, but it cannot be stand by itself.

I added a support extension behind legs.

Reworked on my draft, this time, from cardboard. As the material is more solid comparatively to the paper the sitting area looked more comfortable. And the extension behind the chair is simplified.

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

Now, this is the moment where I added my storage touch to the sitting area. I stretched the head of chair, folded it and formed a shelf for books.

The idea: One infinite surface used as a sit+store unit. The shelf is added as an extension of the chair.

Top view.

In harmony with the cubic style of the chair, the shelf is forming a "V shape" at the back where you can store books, magazines...

MATERIALS / CONSTRUCTION

"Crystalfilm". Photographed by Christina Jorro for Teeth Magazine.

As a material I decided to work with plastic. I love plastic because it is easy to bend and play with new forms. It has a solid appearance and a smooth surface. The finishes are clean and I think it is the perfect material to show the details. As an ancestor of my design I can point "The Panton Chair" which has similar design concerns. This cult item inspired me in material choice. I hope to catch the same effect that I got while folding paper.

"The Panton Chair" In 1960, Panton was the design of the very first single-form injection molded plastic chair. The Stacking chair or S chair versions became its most famous and mass-produced variations.