Alumni chair update
Well it was a long time ago that I promised to keep you up-to-date with my progress towards a chair for the Chairs of the Alumni exhibition. No updates (other than this general one) fortunately doesn’t mean no progress - although as always I wish I was further along the adventure.
In-progress design for alumni chair
The above image shows the current state of my design. This is a CG rendering that I hope gives a reasonable idea of what the chair will look like. At this stage I’m thinking of building it from Tasmanian blackwood so it will be a touch lighter in tone (at least initially) and slightly less warm in colour. The generously wide seat will be woven in a dark blue nylon mono-filament.
Rendered for form only
I use 3D modelling and rendering quite a bit as an additional tool for resolving designs. While it can sometimes be misleading about overall proportion and scale, it is always useful for visualising different woods and design details.
When making a completely new chair design however you always need to create a sturdy mock-up and get multiple people to sit in it to check and adjust the dimensions and angles for comfort and usability. The position and angle of the back rest in relation to the seat is usually the critical investigation. This rough prototype in pine was done very early in the design process. The seat is woven from the same blue nylon as the final chair will be.
A structural prototype used for ergonomic investigations
You might notice in the renderings that each joint of the substructure has a smooth transition between the elements. This is shaped after glue-up. Extra wood is left on each element where it joins another so that this transition can be created. I’m currently working out systems for accurately turning the cylinders of the stretchers between these blocks of extra wood.
9 comments June 21st, 2009
