Herman Miller blog: Lifework » air chair

Top Ten: Best of the Web This Week

Amy Feezor — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 12:00:10 +0000

Here’s a rundown of what we’ve been reading over the past week.

1. This Charles and Ray Eames-inspired post about creative couples (including former Playlister Jenna Park and husband Mark Sopchak) at the Etsy Blog.

2. The dynamic interior of the JWT office in Amsterdam co-designed by Alrik Koudenburg and RJW Elsinga via Ideas to Steal.

3. Edina Sæther’s short series of color-splash photos of the Chair_One by Konstantin Grcic (via Nordic leaves).

4. A look inside the sketchbooks of 10 terrific creatives at Co.Design.

5. The new (and free) Photo-Lettering App by House Industries spotted at Grain Edit.

6. Nice refresher at freshome: “10 Basic Facts You Should Know About Modular Homes.”

7. Dwell’s listing of its favorite Eames films.

8. The stunning and sculptural Hewlett House by MPR Design Group in Sydney, Australia, covered by URDesign Magazine.

9. These treehouses of reclaimed wood by self-taught Japanese designer Takashi Kobayashi (via designboom).

10. “‘I’m Google’ by Dina Kelberman: A Visual Exploration of Google Image Search” at Colossal.

Featured in photo: Air-Chairs and Air-Tables by Jasper Morrison

Six Ways to Explore the Outdoors

Jamie Latendresse — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 12:00:40 +0000

With the recent Groundhog Day prediction of an early spring, yard and patio weather may not be too far off. So with sun and fun in mind, here’s six ways to explore the outdoors.

1. Medici Chair Outdoor, Konstantin Grcic - Reinterpreting its Adirondack Chair ancestor for a contemporary setting, the Medici Chair offers reclined outdoor comfort and relaxation under sun or moon. Spaciously accommodating and perfect as stand-alone piece or gathered around the fire. From Herman Miller.

2. Magis Spun Chair, Thomas Heatherwick - Sit and spin in this sculptural one-of-kind chair designed by Heatherwick to unite architecture, design, and sculpture into “a single practice.” Ideal for both indoor and outdoor, it’s surprisingly comfortable — and undeniably enjoyable. Choose from four colors at Herman Miller.

3. King’s Game, Fruitsuper Design - A handsome update of King’s Game or “Kubb” as it’s known in Sweden, this unique lawn game’s object is to knock over wooden blocks by throwing sticks — a mix of bowling and horseshoes. Comes in a handy go-anywhere tote and is made in the USA. Get one from Fruitsuper Design.

4. Urbanfire Wood Burning, Modfire - Originally designed to match a mid-century patio and perfectly roast marshmallows, this cone-shaped, wood-burning fireplace warmly accents any patio or deck. Rolled steel with handmade shaping and detail. 48″ high. Find yours at Modfire.

5. Air-Chair (with arms), Set of 4, Jasper Morrison - Air-molding technology combines high tech with fine design to deliver this stackable, lightweight, and comfortable seating solution. Choose the arm-chair version for bit of extra comfort and distinctiveness. In a variety of colors, from Herman Miller.

6. Eames Table Contract Base Outdoor, Charles & Ray Eames - With a broad spectrum of sizes and newly developed outdoor-ready finishes, the Eameses’ classic table design wears and weathers beautifully no matter where you place it. A substantial, yet simple centerpiece to your patio or sun porch. Configure yours at Herman Miller.

Photos linked within text.

Herman Miller + Magis: Jasper Morrison

Cerentha Harris — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 16:51:38 +0000

Japser Morrison and his elegantly simple Air-Chair, Folding Air-Chair and the Air-Chair with arms are now a welcome addition to the Herman Miller store. Morrison, one of the design world’s best-known and well-respected members, is certainly an interesting person to pin down. The idea behind this series of posts is that I would introduce you to the new designers we were working with through Magis and I would do that with video interviews. Let the designers speak for themselves. While Morrison, who is based in London with offices also in Paris, writes beautifully and copiously about the state of design today and his own design process there is not a single video interview I can present you. There are scraps of conversation here and there, what looks like a video shot by an audience member at a design show talk and a short film of him setting up an exhibition in Denmark. And that’s it. Perhaps he feels he’s said everything he needs to say in his books.

Thankfully the Air-Chair speaks eloquently for Morrison in that it is stripped back to its bare essentials. There are no extraneous details with this design creating what can easily be described as a “quiet” chair . For Morrison it’s the perfect example of the “super normal” – a term he coined in 2005 while having tea with Takashi Okutani during the Salone del Mobile in Milan. “I mentioned having seen Naoto Fukasawa’s aluminium stools for Magis,” writes Morrison. “And how they seemed to have a special kind of normality about them, and he added: “super normal“. That was it, a name for what I have been trying to achieve all these years, a perfect summary of what design should be, now more than ever.” To read the rest of his essay on super normal click here. You can also check out a slidehshow of his work over on Discover.