Our studio class this semester has been moving at a slower pace than the fall. Last semester, we had three assignments that resulted in three pieces of furniture. This semester, we have one assignment that will result in one or two pieces. I can't say for sure why this is, but I would guess they are hoping we will self-direct our pace and spend more time considering the details. The semi-relaxed atmosphere has been nice but sometimes you need that adrenaline to push you towards the good ideas. Too much consideration can be a bad thing. That said, I hope that is not the case for my chairs. They have been developing slowly, but steadily, and so far I am really pleased with the direction.
The single rope chair has become a grouping which are dependent on each other. The rope of one chair "leg" goes up to the ceiling and comes back down as the "leg" of another chair. In this way, none of the chairs are sit-able unless they are all being used. I have had several recent construction breakthroughs. Instead of bulky knots I have learned how to splice the two ropes together.
This allows my lines to continue uninterrupted, making the chair more like a simple line drawing of a chair. Another added benefit of avoiding knots is in material calculation. Each knot takes up some amount of material and it is difficult to account for it precisely. Another breakthrough has been the seat. Without any internal strength the seat basically collapses upon pressure as there is nothing holding the legs in position. I wanted to use the same material throughout and did not want to hide some sort of internal system. Since the details of the chair design are modeled after the iconic chair, it made sense to make my seat the same way; thus, the woven rush seat.
I ran out of rope (and that is almost 200 feet!) so you aren't getting the complete picture but it is turning out perfectly. I actually might end up leaving a small square in the middle - I like being able to see the single strands passing through the diagonals.
The single rope chair has become a grouping which are dependent on each other. The rope of one chair "leg" goes up to the ceiling and comes back down as the "leg" of another chair. In this way, none of the chairs are sit-able unless they are all being used. I have had several recent construction breakthroughs. Instead of bulky knots I have learned how to splice the two ropes together.
This allows my lines to continue uninterrupted, making the chair more like a simple line drawing of a chair. Another added benefit of avoiding knots is in material calculation. Each knot takes up some amount of material and it is difficult to account for it precisely. Another breakthrough has been the seat. Without any internal strength the seat basically collapses upon pressure as there is nothing holding the legs in position. I wanted to use the same material throughout and did not want to hide some sort of internal system. Since the details of the chair design are modeled after the iconic chair, it made sense to make my seat the same way; thus, the woven rush seat.
I ran out of rope (and that is almost 200 feet!) so you aren't getting the complete picture but it is turning out perfectly. I actually might end up leaving a small square in the middle - I like being able to see the single strands passing through the diagonals.
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