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TRANSFORMER CHAIRS
(chairs that adapt to reading / writing / studying purposes)
© designboom
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carpet chair
- examples of transformers you can use in different ways
without changing mode.
studying, reading, having a conversation,
relaxing on a carpet...
but wasn't the the theme 'transformer chairs'?
let us try to define a chair.
a definition is a statement which captures the meaning,
the use, the function and the essence of a term or a concept.
in doing so we are trying to capture the essence of being a chair,
its 'chairness'.
it is chairness that is defined – not this or that specific chair.
we want to be able to identify chairness whenever and
wherever we come across it.
but chairness cannot be captured without somehow tackling
and including the uses of a chair –
what is it made for, what does it do or help to do.
in other words, a definition must include an operative part,
a function.
in many cases the function of the definiendum (the term defined)
constitutes its meaning.
a chair is a solid structure intended for sitting (genus)?
it makes use of at least one bodily axis of the sitter (differentia)?
without the differentia – with the genus alone – the definition
can well fit a bed or a divan.
many of these problems are solved when we introduce
context to the definition. without the context, the definition can
well fit an appropriately shaped rock.
it all boils down to the same truth: it is the type of definition
chosen and the rigorousness with which we understand the
meaning of 'definition' that determine which words can and
cannot be defined.
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'flying carpet' by ettore sottsass, 1974
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'sleeping cat tapies' by radi designers, 1999
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'ali baba' by oscar tusquets, 1990
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'nomad' by marcel wanders,
manufacturer cappellini, italy, 1998
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'air flow' by ron arad for inflate, 2000
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THE ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF TRANSFORMER CHAIRS
a fascinating study showing hundreds of examples
© designboom
compiled by birgit lohmann
this history timeline is provided for educational purposes only,
no reproduction, re-use or transcription for any commercial purpose or use of the content or images is permitted.
a print-publication will soon be available, for inquieries : [email protected]
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back to the transformer history index
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