Victoria and Albert - Small Armchair

Design: Ron Arad (2002).

Infinity revealed from a curved perspective

A continuous flow of curving lines, an image-form drawn without ever lifting the pencil off the paper. Originally a ‘doughnut’ which provided inspiration for a sculpture: squashed, and reworked, using irony to go beyond the usual approach to industrial design. Then the piece itself: the padding and sewn-to-measure upholstery over an inner fiberglass frame reveal the interaction between the technical and expressive merits of the design. Its never-ending lines are sensitive but strong, perfect consonance between surface and form, body and skin. The fabric reaches out into the space around it magnifying and reinforcing the materiality of the piece yet without interrupting or overpowering its fluidity.

Injected flame-retardant polyurethane foam over internal steel frame. Feet in varnished steel. Covers are not removable.