A look at two new designs that respond to how people are living now.
Bruno is an armchair design with one arm lower than the other that acknowledges changes in the culture of sitting. First inspired by Bruno Munari’s celebrated 1944 poster ‘Seeking Comfort in an Uncomfortable Chair’, the design intended to accommodate new gestures and a different language of sitting.
"From our experience over the years and especially when we were doing the airport lounges, nobody sits the way they are supposed to, everybody sits in a different way. I think culturally we sit in a more relaxed way, left to right, just more casual. We mostly don't sit front to back in chairs, that's just a much more formal way of sitting. We mostly sit diagonally, or even left to right. Women particularly sit diagonally. We are all more relaxed and less assertive in the way we sit, but furniture hasn't necessarily changed to accommodate our new way of sitting."
Ilse Crawford
Bruno is made from an FSC European beech and oak frame, with 99% natural and sustainable upholstery materials.
"It just started with the various sitting positions, and thinking about how we could accommodate them. It suits compact places. It takes up a generous footprint, but maybe rather than having one sofa, you would have two of these chairs. For some people it would make more sense."
Oscar Peña
Another StudioIlse design that is included in the SCP 2022 Collection is the Left & Right tables, which were first made as part of last years Ishinomaki project. They are now being made in FSC European walnut, and function as moveable side tables, they can sit on the floor or are light enough to be placed on a shelf, desk or other suitable surface.
They are made in two different ways, both with hand-drawn circular tops. They are designed to capture the spirit and magic of Japanese joinery and to appear more handmade than machine made.
“The idea is that they are quite low, they become like background products, which is something in the values of StudioIlse. When we do products we often try to do things in the background, not the foreground, not shouty. They look like they have been there for many years.”
Oscar Peña
“It's always good to have options for things around your chair or sofa, but those two have seen off the other things. Everything else seems too big and cumbersome and annoying. They are sort of visible and invisible, and everything is right about them.”
Ilse Crawford
With these designs, StudioIlse brings new perspective to SCP, one that is fascinated by the cultural and anthropological elements that go into the creation of furniture.
View Left & Right side tables >
