Introduction
Determining a design for the Integrative Project (IP) included an initial decision of medium, which was quickly determined to be the design and build of a piece of furniture; however, further consideration had to be given to obtaining a resolution for a problem that was plagueing this industry. When researching an entire compliment of chairs, one that had not received much attention was the outdoor café chair. With there being a new aspect of business, one that includes a mobile component, there is new generation of office setting that is evolving -- that of the outdoor café.
A common theme that seemed to reoccur during the research of outdoor chairs was the complaint associated with a lack of comfort and support, along with the instability of the chair.
Therefore it was the ergonomic aspects of the chair that would be in the forefront during the design phase. Understanding the evolution of the chair was a must during the design process.
The ergonomics and overall sizing of the chair needed to be researched in order to gain an appreciation for each aspect of the chair; with this knowledge being gained through book research and discussions with various Professors in the School of Art & Design.
Research
With respect to the evolution of the office chair, an invaluable source of information was the book, Taxonomy of Office Chairs, by Jonathan Olivares. This book is the first ‘taxonomy’ of an industrialized object. As explained by the author, “A Taxonomy of Office Chairs is an exhaustive visual history of the office chair. The book dissects the design of the chair into its separate elements and categorizes and orders these into the ultimate visual evolution of the design of the modern chair” (Olivares, p. IV). Though it would be difficult to define a particular page that was referenced when designing the Café Chair; a review of a multitude of sketches and diagrams was used to obtain some of the initial design ideas. To review page upon page of the development of so many chairs gave the perspective needed to conceptualize the new design.
The use of a chair is the basis for its design, and this was so elegantly defined by Sigfried
Giedion:
“The roots of the chair can be found in the comforts of rural American life. The American farmer, at the end of the day, will instinctively move to the rocker on his porch. The European peasant sits immovable through the twilight as if nailed to the bench before his cottage. These simple differences must be understood, for more profoundly than one might think, they change the course of inventive fantasy. As soon as mechanization became a decisive power in furniture, these differences began to show”
(Olivares p. 15).
An interrelated and dynamic set of factors motivates chair design. “Work habits, production technologies, ergonomic ideals, and broad social goals change frequently and considerably and affect the features and functions of a chair” (Olivares p. 15). While researching the progression of some of the changes in the evolution of the chair, it was difficult to discern the thought that could have been behind some of the designs. The continued issues of health and how the placement of the body in a chair can affect the muscular structure of the body, was a particular concern when considering the ergonomics; therefore a high priority in the design of the
IP. “As specialized a subject as the chair may be, its evolution and story are indicative of the broad and rapid changes that our society has undergone and will continue to undergo” (Olivares
An issue of focus in the design of the chair was the impact the chair would have on the comfort of those using it. The overall ergonomics of the chair needed to provide a sense of relaxation for the user. As defined by Jonathan Puleio, a Board Certified Professional
Ergonomist, “Ergonomics is the applied science of fitting the physical environment to the individual; when ergonomic design is applied, comfort improves, and efficiency is enhanced”
(Puleio, p. 1). Furniture form, design and aesthetics have become intriguing subject matter.
While stressing ergonomics, other issues considered in the design were the stability of the chair, along with its weight and stackability. Though the comfort of the chair was the primary design consideration, there is the factor associated with the mobility and storage of the chair. Therefore, the chair needed to be able to stack in order to accommodate the space available for storage and it had to be light weight in order to provide for easy movement.
Process - Sketching
The process of sketching individual parts of the chair provided a cut and paste type designing, thus allowing the different aspects of the chair to be pieced together, and creating designs that had subtle variations. The sketches for each component were numerous and varied.
By changing the combination of parts, the Café Chair, as it will be referred, took on different shapes and form prior to making its’ way to the final form. The sketches then provided the basis for a small scale chair model that was constructed using chipboard, and lead to the detailed design in the Rhino CAD system. Process – Rhino CAD Design
Designing the chair in the Rhino CAD system provided the specific dimensions of each piece of the chair giving the capability of adjusting the size, dimensions and curves associated with each part. By designing the chair in Rhino it provided the files that were necessary to create the forms needed that would become the basis of each part. Examples of some of the CAD files are depicted in Illustration 1.