Noah
Armchair
1988 (made)
1988 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In the 1980s the British architect and designer Nigel Coates was one of the first foreign architects to be accepted in Japan when he was invited to design a range of restaurants, clubs and bars. This chair was created for a theatrical, Etruscan-inspired restaurant on Hokkaido Island. Although it appears a one-off, crafted piece, it was intended to be mass-produced and was also intended for commercial sale in Britain. The wooden parts were made using traditional Windsor chair-making methods, and sand-blasted for a rough-hewn, weathered effect. The thin, welded steel legs contrast with the organic, tactile quality of the wood.
This chair may seem unusual in that it abandons some conventions of modern furniture design, including geometric form, exclusively industrial materials and machine-quality finishing. However, it remains a modern and unique design that epitomises the designer's approach.
In a newspaper interview with The Times in April 2008, Coates said 'What's more intimate than furniture? A chair touches you. Each time you sit on it, it should give you pleasure.'
This chair may seem unusual in that it abandons some conventions of modern furniture design, including geometric form, exclusively industrial materials and machine-quality finishing. However, it remains a modern and unique design that epitomises the designer's approach.
In a newspaper interview with The Times in April 2008, Coates said 'What's more intimate than furniture? A chair touches you. Each time you sit on it, it should give you pleasure.'
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Noah (manufacturer's title) |
| Materials and techniques | Steel frame with a sandblasted ash seat bolted on |
| Brief description | Armchair of sandblasted ash, with legs and uprights in steel. British, 1988, designed by Nigel Coates |
| Physical description | The frame of the chair is composed of three steel legs, of thin, circular section, the back one reaching to the full height of the back, the front two finishing just above seat level with bold heads. The legs are joined by two arching stretchers of steel of thinner diameter than the legs, running from the front legs to the back and welded to the legs. These two stretchers are joined mid-way by a cross-tie, parallel with the front of the chair, also welded in place. A horseshoe-shaped section of sand-blasted ash forms the back and arms of the chair in a single piece. It rests on the top of the back leg/upright and the front legs pass through the front ends of the horseshoe, creating sloping arms. The seat, also of sand-blasted ash, is rounded at the back in plan and s saddle-shaped at the front,, in the manner of a Windsor chair. It has a short extension on each front edge at the side, which runs over the end of the back/arm section, the front legs running up through this also and ending in a nut finial. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label |
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| Summary | In the 1980s the British architect and designer Nigel Coates was one of the first foreign architects to be accepted in Japan when he was invited to design a range of restaurants, clubs and bars. This chair was created for a theatrical, Etruscan-inspired restaurant on Hokkaido Island. Although it appears a one-off, crafted piece, it was intended to be mass-produced and was also intended for commercial sale in Britain. The wooden parts were made using traditional Windsor chair-making methods, and sand-blasted for a rough-hewn, weathered effect. The thin, welded steel legs contrast with the organic, tactile quality of the wood. This chair may seem unusual in that it abandons some conventions of modern furniture design, including geometric form, exclusively industrial materials and machine-quality finishing. However, it remains a modern and unique design that epitomises the designer's approach. In a newspaper interview with The Times in April 2008, Coates said 'What's more intimate than furniture? A chair touches you. Each time you sit on it, it should give you pleasure.' |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.15-1990 |
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| Record created | February 12, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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