Chair design & The deVOL Chair
22nd October 2012
There is nothing quite like the chair to beautifully encapsulate the movement of design, and design principles, though-out history. The chair is the love child of any furniture designer because it represents a basic human need to relax; whether we are sitting 2cm from the ground or 2 metres we all share the same desire to sit. Its size means it is not too expensive to make, but big enough to be creative, and so it is often the vehicle for designers to show off; conceptually experiment or test new materials.
The components above make up arguably the most important chair in design history. It is called ‘Side chair No. 14’ and was designed by the Austrian Michael Thonet in 1859! It is important because it was the first chair to be mass produced, appealing to both working and upper classes alike. It has amazingly not dated as shown by a quick search of John Lewis’s website and a very very similar design appears on the first page of results.
A chair that is totally different in approach to Thonet’s chair is below and by Thomas Heatherwick. The chair is an indulgence of enjoyment and the desire to experience something new. As soon as you sit in it you automatically start smiling, as you move about and spin. It is a beautiful and elegant piece of design that is unfortunately very expensive.
Below is a great photo of a deVOL kitchen with some lovely wooden chairs (although you will need to have pretty small legs to sit at the table). Here at deVOL we currently have a range of chairs we sell but as yet do not make chairs. With deVOL steadily expanding it is now time to design our own chair. The deVOL chair. The range of deVOL chair’s will be well balanced, well proportioned and will fit nicely within our shaker range. If you are struggling to find a British made, British designed chair that is a sensible price then this is something worth waiting for.
