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static and adjustable in furniture  

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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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26/04/2008 3:20 am  

I've allways been a bit amazed at the timidity of a lot of modern (in the proper sense of the word) designers, Le Corb might have wanted machines for sitting but he gave us barely any adjustability at all (with the appearance of a lot) , so much of what we like doesn't actually adjust to the individual that well, it might swivel or it might tilt back but thats about it and not nearly enough of it is knockdown.

THe sitzmachine and some italian work was good but the Victorians could be much more innovative with adjustable seating and clever cabinitry.

Thoughts?


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barrympls
(@barrympls)
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26/04/2008 3:25 am  

I'm not sure I understand your thoughts
because most of the classic, lasting longue and sofa classics - from La Corbusier and Eileen Gray to George Nelson, Florence Knoll, Charles & Ray Eames, and Poul Kjaerholm are not adjustable. Yes, the Jacobsen Egg chair has an adjustement, but I get the impression that well designed furniture needs to extra adjustements.....


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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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26/04/2008 3:47 am  

.
Exactly, most of the 'classics' aren't adjustable or they are but in a very limited way, is it that people don't like the appearance of highly adjustable furniture? Is it too expensive to produce? Difficult to upholster?
Are you saying well designed furniture needs no extra capacity for adjustment?
Happy to be proved wrong with examples.
PS I do like the Maralunga (did you consider one of these Barry?) and it gives more without showing its bones.


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SDR
 SDR
(@sdr)
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Posts: 6462
26/04/2008 12:18 pm  

A huge and
worthy subject.
The Aeron chairs would be examples of a present-day movement to make up for lost time. Compare to those very few earlier examples in which the seatback might rotate about a horizontal axis by a few degrees to accomodate the user.
Readers might contribute any number of other, mpre interesting examples. Which designers have shone in this department, and which have ignored the possibilities. . .?


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william-holden-...
(@william-holden-3)
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Posts: 370
26/04/2008 5:15 pm  

two machines-for-sitting...
Osvaldo Borsani P-40 lounge chair, Vladimir Kagan Contour lounge chair (seat adjusts & footrest retracts):

Aside from chairs, daybeds routinely featured adjustable components-- arms which fold down, or seat cushions which pull away from the backrest (Jens Risom made at least one such daybed, I can think of).
As an example of an adjustable table, I can't resist including this common but clever coffee table, manufactured by Castro Convertibles in the 1950's:
(a lever on the underside instantly adjusts height from 16" to 30", the top then revolves and folds out to double size)


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rockland
(@rockland)
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Posts: 984
26/04/2008 6:00 pm  

Best seat in the...
Best seat in the house...the LC4 chaise longue.
Even nice off the base, directly on the rug for watching film classics.


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Antonella
(@antonella)
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Joined: 15 years ago
Posts: 226
26/04/2008 6:01 pm  

I have some pieces of furnitu...
I have some pieces of furniture very similar to these and they work very well for many different sizes.
http://www.gdbi.co.uk/desking/systems/impact.htm


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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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Posts: 2534
27/04/2008 3:08 am  

.
oh no Rockland posts my least favourite piece of furniture 🙂 As with pk24 your body actually remains in a pretty fixed position, if not more so. And it could be knockdown so so easily.


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rockland
(@rockland)
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28/04/2008 3:39 am  

Yes, i expected such....
Yes, i expected such.
Odd isn't it. Such a sacred spot... Is it the location?
I've had 2 or 20 guests including my 80 yr old father that have
had a pleasant nap in that lounge.
And laptop friendly.
Unfortunate that it is in the greatest hits category and is over produced.
BUT, in the comfort and adjustable category, no denying it wins.
My father is training for the senior olympics. He could adjust this lounge
to stretch without strain to his recent knee injury.
He owns this chair when he visits. Loves it.
Slide it full up so the feet are above head for relaxing circulation?
What lounge does that? (he also thinks it is ugly and belongs in a gym)
He also puts those bungie handle things through the base for a bit of
arm exercise. 🙂
And about the only chaise that works well in front of big glass sliders.


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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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28/04/2008 4:43 am  

I deny it very strongly, I fi...
I deny it very strongly, I find sitting in them to be a very constrained experience and feel like a dentist should be hovering over me. The truth is it only rotates, for all its doo dads and visual and manufacturing comlexity, it rotates from only one point in a fixed arc.
Actually dentists chairs are more adjustable.


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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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28/04/2008 5:03 am  

Heath...
I'm with you on dentist's chairs. I WANT my dentist's chair in my house to watch TV in--albeit without the tool tray. 🙂 It is crazy that easy chairs are not being made to those standards of comfort.


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dcwilson
(@dcwilson)
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28/04/2008 5:08 am  

And here it goes...
Drill not included. 🙂


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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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Posts: 2534
28/04/2008 5:26 am  

yeah its the same with Lexus...
yeah its the same with Lexus and Range Rover seats, I've never flown first class but I bet we could learn a thing or two there!


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SDR
 SDR
(@sdr)
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28/04/2008 5:44 am  

tsk tsk
Well, it goes to show that one man's meat is another's poison (as they say).
I'm strongly for folding furniture of all kinds, and have designed an prototyped more than one folding case piece. I was amused to see recently that the bath vanity arm of Kohler has produced a collapsing vanity cabinet.
"Upon arrival, the units are easily assembled, requiring no tools or fasteners. Simply open the vanity until there?s an audible click, snap the bottom into place and assemble the shelf and doors."
http://spheretrending.blogspot.com/2008/04/buzz-from-kbis-kohler-express...


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HPau
 HPau
(@hpau)
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Joined: 6 years ago
Posts: 2534
28/04/2008 8:10 am  

yes, all for folding too, ...
yes, all for folding too, the thought of shipping huge boxes of furniture consisitng of air is quite apalling.
I like the pull + snap bathroom vanity but I think it looks a little flat, I've allways been very impressed with my France + Son chair, you'd never guess it was knockdown (only the allen screws give it away) and it doesn't suffer structurally for it at all, so much flat pack + knockdown looks a little flat + lifeless, but with a bit of imagination it doesn't need to.


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