Movie: designer Arik Levy explains why he wished to style a assortment of bent-wood chairs in this movie produced by Dezeen for Czech furnishings brand TON.
Levy’s Split assortment of chairs and stools, which will be presented in Milan later on this month, are the initial time the Paris-based designer has used bent wood.
Levy describes the traditional process of wood bending – in which wood is softened in a steam vat and then bent by hand – as a “choreography” that he needed to master.
Connected story: Alexander Gufler unveils sculptural wooden furniture for TON
“The harmony amongst the two men and women that bend and lock the wood into place is a song to your eyes,” he says. “I wanted to understand this song.”
Levy’s furnishings assortment is named Split since the legs of every chair are formed from a single piece of wood that is divided in two at 1 finish and bent in different directions to help the seat and backrest.
“In a lot of instances I just invent a name which is a metaphor,” Levy says. “But in this situation the wood virtually splits into two parts.”
The collection is a very first for TON also. The Czech organization, which Levy describes as “1 of the world’s best producers of bent wood furniture,” has been bending wood considering that German-Austrian furnishings maker Michael Thonet opened the factory in 1861. Thonet became TON following the firm was nationalised during the region’s period of Communism following the 2nd World War.
Dezeen Guide of Interviews: Arik Levy functions in our new book, which is on sale now
Nevertheless, it has never ever ahead of manufactured a merchandise featuring single pieces of wood that have been split and bent in this way.
A single piece of wood is bent in two diverse directions
“What TON and I did with each other is not actually just a merchandise, it truly is an concept,” Levy claims. “[It is about] how to use what they’ve completed for a lot of many years and project it into the potential.”
The assortment consists of chairs, armchairs, lounge chairs and bar stools, which are accessible in a selection of various colors and finishes, including stained wood and upholstered versions.
The stained chairs will be offered in strong colours or with a gradient, exactly where the stain becomes lighter in the direction of the centre of the chair.
“This is anything I used to do on my surfboards or on my skateboard decks,” Levy explains. “I grew to become the nightmare of the man who’s [applying the stain] in the factory. He’s employed to carrying out something total and homogenous and out of the blue this lulu comes and says, ‘let’s do a gradient!'”
The Split collection will be presented at this year’s Salone del Mobile furniture fair in Milan, Hall 12 Stand C05, from 14 to 19 April.
This film was created by Dezeen for TON. It was filmed at the company’s factory at Bystřice pod Hostýnem in the Czech Republic. The music used is a track referred to as Hanging Out of Moving Autos by US artist RyIm.
Arik Levy. Copyright: Dezeen Dezeen
