PROCESS
COMFORT
Making a chair comfortable is central to all my designs. Comfort and good posture are much the same thing. Generous lumbar support and very little contact for the lower back prove remarkably effective and provide solutions for users with a range of seating requirements. All my designs have flexible structures, essential as flexible chairs make for flexible people! Not only do they yield to your body, but also encourage your movement, which in turn reduces pressure points and again leads to greater comfort.
Being able to get your feet back under the seat makes getting in and out of a chair much easier, as well as making for a comfortable forward sitting posture. To this end they all avoid the need for a front rail. Lightweight chairs make it much easier to move towards or away from a table as well as using less material and space.
With public seating, flexible structure is rarely appropriate but the arrangement of people relative to each other to encourage conviviality is fascinating. It is greatly helped if relating to another is optional. The usual arrangement, in line seating, is the worst case, giving neither privacy or inclusivity. Achieving arrangements to encourage interaction is another aspect of comfort.
STRUCTURE
A chair has to support a dynamic load many times its own weight. These chairs are designed as fully triangulated structures where all the joints can be pivots; the strength is in the geometry, not in a massive structure. However to overcome the stiffness of triangulation, one or more sides of the triangles are curved and thus allow flexibility which in turn makes the structure stronger, lighter and more comfortable.
MATERIAL
When looking for appropriate materials, wood stands head and shoulders above other structural materials. Merely growing it has environmental benefits. Of hardwoods, Ash stands out above all others. It is the toughest, and remarkably, is strongest when fast grown. It is self seeding. It has no sap wood so less wastage in conversion. It, together with Douglas Fir, absorbs more atmospheric carbons than any other tree. It grows particularly well in UK. It is excellent for steam bending. It is plentiful and not too expensive. The best fast grown material usually comes from young trees, this is particularly useful to timber growers as they are frequently forest thinnings, giving a return in a shorter time than the traditional main crop.
PRODUCTION
Steam bending is one of those activities where fast work is better than slow, it is very efficient and enjoyable but not fool proof, making it a very good use of a craftsman’s time. It also seasons the wood at the same time as it is bent, using a fraction of the energy required in conventional kiln drying. Because the timber is worked “green” (unseasoned) it can be sourced directly from the forester who can select the right pieces, which frequently would have no other market.
