FLEXIBLE LOVE Chair by Chishen Chiu
Chair, Design, Earth & Future Friendly, Furniture, Product Design, Responsibly Made in China, Social Design, Solutions, Young Designers Add comments
Translated by Silvia — Surfing around the Internet yesterday looking for solutions for sustainable furnishings, we fell upon FLEXIBLE LOVE. We immediately liked the name and, indeed, it sums up in two words the philosophy which hides behind this project. It is, in fact, a fantastic example of social, ecological and philanthropic design that manages to mix concrete utility and love for the environment and for others.
It is born from a very simple but effective concept: a flexible chair that uses fully the structural properties of honeycomb, applied to the working of an accordion. An incredible result of extensibility, resistance and rigidity, considering that the material used is nothing more than… paper!
A myriad of used sheets of paper that are recuperated, recycled and reused in a completely new way by the new Taiwanese designer Chishen Chiu for an extendible chair that can also be compact and multiform to host anywhere from 1 to 16 people! A group of good friends, a soccer team, a school class…
Take a look at the 2 videos and the images you will find below and in the cut.
The birth of FLEXIBLE LOVE chair was greatly influenced by Chishen Chiu’s personal experience from when he stumbled into a cardboard factory in the suburbs on Taipei. Immediately intrigued by the use of the bee’s nest structure in the industrial production of cardboard panes as substitutes for wooden ones, the young Taiwanese student developed in just a few days the concept of a chair, transformable from a seat to a bench, exploiting the huge resistance and rigidity that this material can take on in this specific structure.
Using only eco-friendly materials such as recycled paper, post-industrially rejected wood (plywood panels, chipboard panels, OSB) and ecological glue matched with pre-existing production processes, FLEXIBLE LOVE chair is thought out, from its very existence, to be a chair with a low environmental impact.
It can take on different shapes: linear, S-shaped, etc. for an almost total interactivity and adaptability with the user. Produced in 5 versions (other than the 16-person model, there’s also the one for 12 people, for 8, Couple for 2 and Mini, a 25:1 scale rendition of the Flexible Love 16) its first editions were immediately snatched out of stores.
It deserves another few words for its dimensions: 64cm tall and 56cm wide, its extendibility goes from 22.5cm in the compact version to 720cm open to the max. It weighs only 25kg, but can take a load of up to 1920kg!
An interesting piece of social and democratic design: you just need to coordinate yourself with your seating companions so as to avoid unfortunate capsizings.
An interesting presentation (in Chinese) by the designer Chishen Chiu.
Related posts:
- OPPURE Cartone Design is born: a new concept of readymade furniture. Preview at the Fuori Furniture Fair of 2008
- Unconventional furniture – part 1: New materials to sit on
- Dremu Design: fresh creativity from Singapore
- Unconventional furniture – part 2: Reuse for a new charm
- Orange22’s Social Design: Botanist Pink Limited Edition and Blank Canvas Project
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February 24th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Seeing such a product for the first time is encouraging, that there are designers out there creating sustainable yet thoughtful products. Too often do I stumble across a new “green product” made of recycled barf with a solar-panel slapped on and it helps third-world children buy segways. Though I am curious about the manufacturing process of the Flexible Love, it overall seems like an innovative solution to the age old need for furniture.
I have yet to see this chair on the mainstream market (aka larger chains such as Bed, Bath and Beyond; Wal-Mart; Target; etc.). Though the chair seems more appropriate in less-developed areas with a limitation on furniture choice (if there even is a choice), I think sharing the product to everyday consumers will help spread a message. I feel much of the public should think before they are suckered into buying the latest product. The earth cannot keep up with the demand of consumerism forever, and introducing a responsible product will help communicate that. The impact the product will have on the environment should be considered more.
I am somewhat drawn back by the “mini” version of the chair. Though it is very cute and appealing, I feel that it almost defeats the purpose of creating a socially responsible chair by creating the toy. The toy version has no real use and is almost obsolete.
I hope the designer will continue with his work and spread into other areas that need improvement such as shelters, water treatment, and transportation. I feel the application of this material can go many ways if ideas are developed. If not, I now am more confident someone else will.
May 15th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
Thank you for your observations of the Flexible Love chair. I disagree with your thoughts on the mini chair though. I think it would be wonderful for a little girl’s doll house or play house - a great way to help little ones see the value of recycling.
Also, do you know if this product is for sale and if so, where?
Thanks, NancyAnn from Oregon
October 19th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
u can buy it at http://www.flexiblelove.com/?page_id=42
select buy and choose the closest place 2 u. there only soled in 3 contries though but i say its worth travling 4 a chair as awesome as that.
December 4th, 2009 at 12:03 am
Is this available for sale and if so where?