Part２／To the future that involves “Re-design”
A form of perception
Design to unite the future with memories of the past
When we work on chair designs, we designers sometimes feel that we are embarking on an endless journey. What could we aim for beyond a chair’s self-evident function, “to be sat on”? Are we trying to show the possibilities of a specific material or manufacturing technique, or is it to show how easy and practical it is to use? Or, is it to discover a new structure, or to create a beautiful sculptural form?… Maybe all of these could be a starting point to design a new chair. Other than that, and furthermore, we feel that there is a certain mysterious “charm” in a tool called a chair. It might come from the “trail of memories” left by numerous owners from the long history of the chair.
Here is the “Windsor Chair”: it is said to have been born in England in the late 17th century. Conserving memories from its very beginning, this is one of the chairs that is still being made today. The “Windsor Department” is a design society formed by three designer units who have a common interest in the chair with this “trail of memories” One day, these three designers started wondering why they were so attracted to this form of old chair. This question was very important to help them find why exactly they wanted to design a new chair. For designers, this kind of research enables them to create forms translated from their intuitions, rather than translating their instincts into words. Therefore, each of the three designers in the group has been designing their own interpretation of a new Windsor Chair after studying their own “Windsor-style articles” over the last 10 years since the start of the society.
There is no clear answer to the question: what is the definition of “Windsor-style articles”? However, this experiment to discover forms to correspond to our sensuous feelings has given us numerous perceptions. It was all thanks to the firm presence of the “Windsor Chair”. Furthermore, it has given us an important reward: when thinking of design, it enabled us to explore freely outside of the concept of old or new, and to take a more broad, sustainable path.
It will be our pleasure if you will also share the experience of these three designers’ in “A form of perception”.