metal comfort
i designed metal comfort while learning the basic structure of metallic materials and studying the properties and processes used to manipulate them. i was determined to harness ability of steel to be heat treated to make a novel piece of furniture. the seat of my bench is made up of riveted sheets of spring steel, arranged so that the hard metal surface gives under human weight much like upholstery. the piece uses only hard materials, yet it achieves a high level of comfort through precise material processing and the arrangement of the material into a planar spring. the blue color of the seat is a natural product of the heat treat process.
the copper elements explore a different idea. similar to the work of harry bertoia, i wanted to create a matrix of spot welded wires that add structure and stiffness to the piece. however unlike bertoia chairs, i wanted to create a doubly curved surface using only straight elements. thus, a pattern similar to a nuclear cooling tower, the surface created by revolving a hyperbola, was implemented.
