Esin Arsan won the competition with her “One for Two” chair. It is an exploration of situations where people need a little encouragement to start interacting with others and is designed to be a loveseat hugging its sitters. It is made to give its users a pat on the shoulder in order to make them feel understood, accepted and supported.

 

There were four runners-up in the challenge. The “Nabolis” chair by Mike Jozewicz looks at the layering of materials, colors and meanings, using Wilsonart laminate applied in a series of layers of topography. The idea came from Jozewicz’s photographic study of the weathering of man-made materials.

Alexandra Pulver’s “Lunch Bag” chair was inspired by the iconic symbol of the working-class lunch—the brown paper bag. While she left only a few large wrinkles, instead of covering the full surface, the stool still alludes to its namesake.

 

The less modern “Wilson Primitive” chair, designed by Jonathan Gillen, highlights the process of creation, work, intensive practices and primitive craft. It was built from reclaimed laminate samples and took more than 70 hours to weave.

The final chair design came from Sushir Kadidal, who created the “Tempo” chair (not shown). This chair mimics sine waves to allude to the visualization and depiction of sound.

All photos: Clint Blowers