Chair Avatars
This is a display area for my spare chairs - my various Twitter avatars.
Why Chairs?
Chairs symbolize social interaction. They invite you to sit down and stay a while; take a load off. You're probably sitting right now. We sit down to digest news. We sit to think. We sit to be social. You might say chairs are the first social media. Okay, you wouldn't but let's pretend.
Some beautiful chairs are painful to sit on (talkin' to you Frank Lloyd Wright, and owners of Indian restaurants everywhere). Many comfy chairs can look quite ugly. Chairs can fit with all situations - from thrones to bean-bags. Lawn chairs say "relax, enjoy the weather." Kitchen chairs say "have a bite." Dentists' chairs say "sit down and scream a while."
As an early user of Twitter in '07, I began to explore a dynamic avatar idea – it was always easy to identify my feed based on the avatar's subject matter, but the actual image changed often. If you followed me and my meanderings, I hope you found the conversation fun and/or thoughtful. Pull up a chair.
The avatar history is captured below...
May 6, 2015
Axelsson's "Akustik" Chair
It's a bare-bones chair silhouette, with simple lines and functional design. But Sweden's Åke Axelsson, adds a slight curve in the arm supports, and an angle to the rear legs that give the chair a bit of punch. (The Akustik II takes it a bit further). The 1940s and 50s trained designer marries crisp design with a strong colour palette. There are a number of variants from a nicely-proportioned mini version, to a tall stool, to an arm-less design. It's a family of chairs that references the ur-chair of modern design. Axelsson helps to define the Swedish style and functional approach to furniture.
The design is apparently enviro-friendly as well. And there's a leather seat option I'd love to try out.
Another notable Axelsson design in his "Wood" chair, featured in this DesignBoom article. It's like he's reduced the chair down to its essence, then flat-packed it. Clearly a homage to the 19th century Thonet No. 14 chair, and an improvement that likely makes the latter's uncomfortable back less so.
