efficiency in shipping and assembly. The aesthetic was
influenced by the technology, with generous curves honestly
reflecting the bent wood process.
The Eames Molded Fiberglass chair (1950) features a smooth
and continuous organic form, unique in appearance and
extremely comfortable. It was originally designed in stamped
metal, which proved too costly and prone to rust. Instead, a new
manufacturing technique was utilized that allowed fiberglass to
cure at room temperature. A boat builder, who was familiar with
fiberglass, helped build early prototypes to prove out the
concept.^9
Jasper Morrison’s Air chair (1999) takes reduction of parts to the
extreme, since it is constructed out of a single piece of injection-
molded polypropylene. Inert gas is pumped into the center of
molten plastic, resulting in a solid, light, and economical product
that comes off the assembly line fully formed.
Konstantin Grcic’s Chair_One (2004) uses a die-cast aluminum
process to achieve an original form that is at once full of voids,
yet very solid; angular and sculptural at a glance, yet surprisingly
more comfortable than it looks. Grcic says that “a bad chair is
one that performs all the requirements, but remains just a chair.
One that I use to sit on, but then I get up and it didn’t mean
anything to me.”^10 He believes that what makes good design is
something hidden in the relationship you have with the object.
Design for Context
Of the chairs mentioned above, the fiberglass model by the
husband and wife design team of Charles and Ray Eames
(^9) ‘Molded Plastic Chairs | Eames Designs’. 2015. Accessed January 22.
http://eamesdesigns.com/library-entry/molded-plastic-chairs/.
(^10) NOWNESS’. 2015. Accessed January 22. https://www.nowness.com/series/on-
design/on-design-konstantin-grcic.