S U R F N' K E R F is an a lounge chair which utilizes experimental timber fabrication methods as part of a larger exploration of mass timber fabrication innovations. This chair was developed through intense iteration and experimentation; we were particularly interested in using strategic manipulation of a single surface to create the back, seat, and legs of a chair. We achieved these goals through optimizing an array of curves created with selective and variable kerfing. Many material manipulation and form making trials resulted in a chair that uses two simple surfaces that lay together and split apart in different areas making all elements of the chair through simple swooping motions.
Level: M.Arch, 601, Thesis Prep
Project Prompt: Timber Experimentation via Chair Design
Classification: Furniture, Fabrication, Computational Design
Methods: Rhino, Grasshopper, VRay for Rhino, Illustrator, Photoshop, Advanced Digital Fabrication, Wood Working, Metal Working, Sketching, Physical Modeling
This project was created in collaboration with Hana Saifullah under the guidance of Professor Tsz Yan Ng at the University of Michigan.
To view full process of chair development please view slideshow (first 3 slides may load slowly):
