Flow Armchair

Press Kit

Unique Properties

Flow is an armchair inspired by the flow of water. It’s a design that captures a static image of water flowing over rocks, two different elements that while in motion form one coherent entity and shape themselves around whatever crosses its path. It is as if the person sitting on the armchair were a rock, while the water flows around the person’s body. This creates a design that perfectly fits around the human body while being entirely unique from every angle.

Dimensions & Packaging

The armchair has a seating height of 46 cm measured at its highest point. It is 57 cm wide, 62 cm deep and 70 cm tall.

Tags

Flow, armchair, chair, Mattice, Boets, design, water, blue, rock, furniture

Production Technology

Flow consists of a steel inner frame that is pressed and then welded together. The chair is split up into multiple pieces which are then slid into the frame and attached. This creates a strong and durable construction. Foam in variable densities is used throughout the chair providing support where needed.

Design Challenge

During the development of the armchair, a prototype of hard foam was made. To speed up the development cycle, I made the prototype myself by sculpting a large block of foam by hand. Although I attempted to use section references, its organic design was too complex to be of any help. As a last resort, I sculpted the block of foam by eye with little to no tools. The prototype turned out great, but it was by far the most challenging aspect of realizing this project in time.

Project Duration

The project started in October of 2019 in Kortrijk, Belgium and was finalized in January of 2020.

Operation Flow

The armrests in combination with the slightly reclined seating area provide a comfortable and relaxed position. When sitting, the inner foam adapts slightly while the back provides sufficient support. In a way, the armchair becomes part of you. Its deep blue color of water reminds us of how the design came to be.

Research

The idea of Flow sparked during a walk near a local river. I find it interesting to look at things and wonder what they could become. From the flow of water, the interaction of plants and their environment to the way in which organisms grow. Although its relevance in the world of design is often overlooked since it doesn’t necessarily provide any immediate practical benefit, it does allow us to tell a story not in words but in physical matter.

Inspiration

Inspired by one of the oldest and most recognizable elements of nature, water and stone. Its shape creates a sense of familiarity and trust on an instinctive level, yet its form is unlike anything else. The design started as a bare rock, the simplest form of a chair. Then the water came, flowing all around the rock and the person. It is the interaction between this simple rock and the water that created this design.

Patents

Copyrights belong to Mattice Boets, 2020.

Colors of Flow Armchair