Mr Bangs’ Design Studio

Mr Clark’s Workshop

Miss Vaz’s Workshop

Additional computer suite

The Course

“A product is a physical object that has been designed and made, performing a task that improves lives in some way ie a chair, watch, any gadget, but not vehicles or architecture. Great products perform their tasks well but also improve our every day well-being including our appreciation of its aesthetics,”- G Bangs 2020

Being a good designer involves critically analysing all products that we see. What is

good about it and how could it be made better? Henry Royce, of Rolls Royce once said, "Strive for perfection in everything. Take the

best that exists and make it better. If it doesn't exist, create it. Accept nothing nearly right or

good enough“. Over the summer look at all products, especially furniture, how could you

make it better?

Zap the QR code to watch the video regarding poor design!

ICONIC PRODUCT DESIGNEames Lounge Chair and ottoman

Designer Charles and Ray Eames

Date 1956

Materials Plywood, leather

Style / tradition Modern

Sold by Herman Miller (United States)

The Eames Lounge Chair and ottoman are furnishings made of molded plywood and leather, designed by Charles and Ray Eames for the Herman Miller furniture company. They are officially titled Eames Lounge (670) and Ottoman (671) and were released in 1956 after years of development by designers. It was the first chair that the Eameses designed for a high-end market. Examples of these furnishings are part of the permanent collection of New York's Museum of Modern Art.[1]

Design[edit]

Charles and Ray Eames sought to develop furniture that could be mass-produced and affordable, with the exception of the Eames Lounge Chair. This luxury item was inspired by the traditional English club

chair. The Eames Lounge Chair is an icon of Modern style design, although when it was first made, Ray Eames remarked in a letter to Charles that the chair looked "comfortable and un-

designy".[2] Charles's vision was for a chair with "the warm, receptive look of a well-used first baseman's mitt." The chair is composed of three curved plywood shells covered with veneer: the headrest, the

backrest and the seat. The layers are glued together and shaped under heat and pressure. The shells and the seat cushions are essentially of the same shape, and composed of two curved forms

interlocking to form a solid mass. The chair back and headrest are identical in proportion, as are the seat and the ottoman.[3]

The products have changed in various ways over time. Beginning in 1956 and running through the very early 1990s, the shells were made up of five thin layers of plywood which were covered by a veneer

of Brazilian rosewood. The use of Brazilian rosewood was discontinued in the early 1990s, and current production since then consists of seven layers of plywood covered by finishing veneers of cherry,

walnut, Palisander rosewood (a sustainably grown wood with similar grain patterns to the original Brazilian versions), and other finishes. Small changes include the sets of spacers between the aluminum

spines and the wood panels, originally of rubber, later hard plastic washers, and the number of screws securing the armrests, originally three, changed to two in second-series models, while the "domes of

silence" (glides/feet) on the chair base originally had thinner screws attaching them to the aluminum base than those on later chairs, and the zipper around the cushions, either brown or black on early

models, was later black only. Further, early ottomans had removable rubber slide-on feet with metal glides, and early labels are of oblong foil.[3]

The Eameses constantly made use of new materials. The pair's first plywood chair—the Eames Lounge Chair Wood (LCW)—made use of a heavy rubber washer glued to the backrest of the chair and

screwed to the lumbar support. These washers, which have come to be called "shock mounts", allow the backrest to flex slightly.[4] This technology was brought back in the 670 Lounge chair. The backrest

and headrest are screwed together by a pair of aluminum supports. This unit is suspended on the seat via two connection points in the armrests. The armrests are screwed to shock mounts, which are

connected only by glue to the interior of the backrest shell, allowing the backrest and headrest to flex when the chair is in use. This is part of the chair's unusual design, as well as its weakest link, as the

shock mounts have been known to tear free, causing collapse and damage.

Other creative uses of materials include the seat cushions, which eschew standard stapled or nailed upholstery. Instead, the cushions are sewn with a zipper around the outer edge that connects them to a

stiff plastic backing. The backing affixes to the plywood shells with a series of hidden clips and rings. This design, along with the hidden shock mounts in the armrest allow the outside veneer of the chair to

be unmarred by screws or bolts. The chair has a low seat which is permanently fixed at a recline. The seat of the chair swivels on a cast aluminum base, with glides that are threaded so that the chair will

remain level

Summer TaskSituation: You are a successful and skilled product designer who lives in a very trendy flat over looking the Thames in London.

Brief: ‘You are to design a chair to fit into your flat that reflects your style, creativity and your personality! However, it must have an architecture theme or design influence.’

Look at the chair design posters on the wall in

my room earlier in this video.

Task & Success Criteria

Produce on A1 paper (or four A3) a design poster showing how you have researched, generated ideas and then allowed it to develop into a final product drawing in response to a situation and brief.

Your poster/ posters must include:• An analysed existing chair (that inspires you) focusing on fact and your opinion of its

aesthetics, materials, function, manufacture (how it is made) and target market.• A simple mood board of architecture that can be used as inspiration, analyse it and add

your thoughts looking closely at the aesthetics of the building including shape, pattern, colour, texture, materials and construction techniques.

• At least two different sketch ideas for a chair that uses your previously analysed existing chair and your architecture mood board as inspiration. Use what you have analysed and ensure that it can be said about your designs ideas as well!

• A final drawing of your chair idea with notes and labels explaining it which has clearly been developed from your sketch ideas.