designed with Martinelli Venezia

Hyper-seriality, online sales, and democratic nature.

In May 2014, we began to discuss the idea of a chair that was representative of the contemporary world, in terms of production technology, sales methods and use features. We wanted to design an iconic, democratic product, meant to be sold online and we decided to investigate the theme of hyper-seriality. After a 5-year design process, Chair 1:1 was born. A mountable/demountable chair, in which all the pieces are moulded in one go, thus optimizing the mould size and the speed of the production process, reducing waste to a minimum as well. The chair is sold just as it comes out of the mould, bypassing several steps; it will be the buyer who will complete the process: this is hyper-seriality.

Now, Chair1:1 is under development and it has been selected for ADI DESIGN INDEX 2021.

Special thanks to:
Secostampi-Plastamp for technical support
Sandro Trigila for still-life images
Stefania Zanetti for urban photos

When looking at the Chair 1:1, it is inevitable to have a blast from the past, remembering the boxed toy kits. As in that case, there are no screws nor bolts: assembly is effortless and immediate. Mounting an object makes a bond with it and makes you feel its full value; it builds an affection that stops you from getting rid of it.

It’s a product that can be easily stored, shipped and transported: 26 boxed up chairs take up only 1 square meter, and this is key to online sales and in terms of sustainability. As soon as it is printed, its image has a strong expressive impact; but once mounted, it no longer reveals its productive essence. It’s a compact chair, “polite”, designed to suit even the most ordinary houses.

(Per leggere il testo in italiano clicca qui.)

The project is a well-structured trade-off between the production system and assembly system. The fastening elements of the individual parts are designed to be easily producible but at the same time extremely resistant. We did not settle for a mere concept; we engaged in a dialogue with Secostampi and Plastamp (leading companies in the production of moulds and chair moulding) and, thanks to the discussion with them, the shape has evolved up to the current.

While designing, we have often wondered whether in a world saturated with products, it was right to work in the direction of hyper-seriality with a material such as plastic. We believe, however, that the real mistake is to combine it with other materials that make it hard to recycle as well as to use it for packaging or in disposable products. The best way to make a sustainable product is to extend its lifespan, make it single-material and think about the whole life process. We also wanted a quality yet a democratic product that could replace all those chairs of poor workmanship and durability.

We are glad to share now this research project because we think it could also provide interesting food for thought about industrial design. No longer with the focus on the product as an independent element; but more and more as inseparable from the sales methods, purchase, use and finally disposal.

The 1:1 Chair will also be part of the catalogue and exhibition “The New Domestic Landscape”, which aims to explore the current domestic landscape. At first scheduled last March, at Palazzo Ca’Tron (Venice), the exhibition is now postponed after the summer, to a date to be defined.