K-Block thumbnail 1
K-Block thumbnail 2
On display

K-Block

Chair
2005 (manufactured)
Artist/Maker
El Ultimo Grito (designer)
Nola Industrier (manufacturer)
Place of origin
London (designed)
Stockholm (manufactured)

The K Block seat was designed by El Ultimo Grito in 2005. The Spanish pair initially presented the K-Block at the Bloomberg Gallery in London. Its concept is very simple, it can be used as a seat or it can stack. Combinations of the K-Block can be used to create other furniture requirements or a creative jigsaw. It was subsequently manufactured by Nola Industrier in Stockholm.

Object details

Categories
Children & Childhood
Furniture
Plastic
Object type
Chair
TitleK-Block (manufacturer's title)
Materials and techniques
Moulded plastic: Polyethylene
Polyethylene
Injection Moulding
Brief description
K-Block seat designed in Spain by El Ultimo Grito and made by Nola Industier in Stockholm in 2005
Physical description
A simple red, plastic block in the shape of a 'K' so that it can be used in a variety of ways. It looks like two triangles placed together, but has no visible line as it was manufactured from a mould. Either side of the edges protrude the centre slightly. The edges of the seat are curved.
Dimensions
  • Height: 30cm
  • Width: 30.9cm
  • Length: 45.5cm
  • Weight: 3.45kg (nifill)
Production typeMass produced
Gallery label
(01/07/2023)
K-Block chair

There’s no right way to sit in this chair. It invites us to be playful.

Is it even a chair? The designers hoped users would stack them up to invent new furniture or use it as a puzzle. Placing it one way in particular gives it its name.

Designer: El Ultimo Grito, Spain
Manufacturer: Nola Industrier, Stockholm
Date: 2005
Materials: Plastic
Given by Nola Industrier AB
Museum no. B.94-2010

[Young V&A, Design Gallery, Design changes materials we use, long object label]
K Block seat
2005

This modular seat does not dictate a specific use - the child is free to use them in different and imaginative ways.

It was designed by the Spanish duo El Ultimo Grito. The child can use it as a seat or something more creative and playful. It can be sat on as a stool or stacked with others in a sculptural way or laid out like a jigsaw.
Credit line
Given by Nola Industrier AB
Object history
The seat was acquired by the museum in 2010 as part of the exhibition 'Sit Down: Seating for Kids'. It was used in the section titled 'Who are seats for?' and represented 'playing' because it shows the different ways a seat can be used creatively for play, alongside swings and ride-on cars.
Subject depicted
Letters
Summary
The K Block seat was designed by El Ultimo Grito in 2005. The Spanish pair initially presented the K-Block at the Bloomberg Gallery in London. Its concept is very simple, it can be used as a seat or it can stack. Combinations of the K-Block can be used to create other furniture requirements or a creative jigsaw. It was subsequently manufactured by Nola Industrier in Stockholm.
Collection
Young V&A Collection
Accession number
B.94-2010

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Record createdAugust 24, 2010
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1171540/k-block-chair-el-ultimo-grito/
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