Ten Unconventional Chairs at Dutch Design Week 2024. Rewear Chair by Uncommon Creative Studio.
Design. Spiky, upcycled, heated or hacked. At Dutch Design Week 2024, we selected ten unconventional chairs by students and emerging designers. The seats stand out for their lateral-thinking design, sustainable message and distinctive personality.
- RELATED STORIES: Read more about Dutch Design Week on Archipanic.
Heated and low-tech
Photo by ©RonaldSmits, courtesy of Design Academy Eindhoven.
Instead of heating a space, Jade Fritsch‘s Treatment for a Re-Connection chair warms up through direct contact. The low-tech furniture stores heat through the natural properties of its materials—clay, fibres, and sand—creating a microclimate that distributes heat over the course of the day once disconnected from an electrical source.
In the name of eco-cleaning
Photo by Uncommon Creative Studio.
Uncommon Creative Studio’s Rewear Chair is a responsible seat with collapsible arms for airing out clothes. The design encourages users to re-wear garments rather than unnecessarily washing them. The project was developed as part of the eco-cleaning brand Ecover’s awareness campaign, highlighting the environmental impact of everyday activities like laundry.
Upcycled wood chips
Courtesy of Piet Hein Eek.
Piet Hein Eek launched a design collection made from wood chips. Instead of being compressed into briquettes and burned, wood leftovers from furniture production were upcycled to create a unique texture, material, and colour collection comprising stools and benches.
Digital patterns
Photo by Anna Resei.
Designer Anna Resei combines digital tools to create the undulating appearance of her Formation lounge chair, made from bent and cut aluminium sheets and textiles, with digitally applied prints and upcycled upholstery filling. The seat is shown as part of the Specimen exhibition by Dutch Invertuals, which also celebrates the design platform’s 15th anniversary.
Hacked and playful
Photo by ©Femke Reijerman, courtesy of Design Academy Eindhoven.
“Average-sized people leave many uncomfortable and overlooked,” says Lynn Gong, a Design Academy Eindhoven’s Bachelor graduate. The designer challenged the norm by offering adjustable seating for everyone by transforming classic wooden chairs into adaptable, playful seating using colourful materials like bright orange felt rolls and Lego blocks attached to the backrest and legs.
Functionally embedded
Courtesy of Isola Design.
As part of the Isola Design showcase in Eindhoven, Dutch designer Ramon Nelissen presents ChairCase. This functional cabinet seamlessly integrates two chairs into its structure to meet new generations’ compact living spaces without sacrificing style. The seats can be tucked away or simply stored in the shelving system.
‘Comfortably’ spiky
Photo via IG, follow @marie.judth.
Marie Judith Le Gars presents the Spike Chair at the Crash Landing group exhibition at Heuvel. Like a Nuremberg virgin, the tongue-in-cheek wooden seat features rotating elements with thorns, playfully contrasting with the soft and welcoming design. “I promise it’s comfortable!” the designer assures.
Safe shower chair
Courtesy of DDW 2024.
Lola Behrens presented LAVA, a healthcare shower chair for people with age-related limitations that promotes their autonomy without barriers, thanks to its functionality and appearance. Integrating a shower head, soap holder, and an accessible hygiene cut-out enables independent showering.
Social-driven
Photo by Rene van der Hulst.
Ineke Hans teamed up with care organisation Plan O Maap and woodworking shop De Winkel Die Werk to create Trap, a collection of wooden stools that double as tables, clothes stands, or steps. The pieces were part of the pop-up dining room exhibition by Social Label, which features pieces by ethical design brands involving makers with disabilities.
Sitting Bull Chair by
Photo by ©Silvio Macchi.
Orfeo Studio created a chair composed of square-section tubes made entirely of 100% recycled stainless steel and welded together. The extra-clear glass seat and backrests are mounted on the structure with UV-welded spacers. Named Sitting Bull, the design is an ode to the strength and power of an invincible warrior.
