nicolas le moigne: leather slip stool

‘leather slip stool’ by nicolas le moigne for gallery libby sellers leather and polyurethane ∅ 33 x 38 cm

the ‘leather slip stool’ is an continuation of nicolas le moigne‘s ‘slip collection‘ which he began with swiss company eternit — the manufacturer known for producing products out of a fiber cement compound — back in 2007. together with them, the swiss designer has produced a range of products from stools and tables to lighting pieces, made from the simple material, whereby no specific tools or machines are required for production, each object being handmade and air-dryed within a few short hours before it is ready for use.

the previous ‘slip stool’ he conceived with the manufacturer was derived from the idea of trying to find a means of recycling scraps, giving value to imperfections that are a resulting outcome of production and trying to emphasize these ‘unique’ qualities in each piece.

following a collaboration with a swiss producer who specializes in leather, le moigne noticed that a huge amount of material was discarded because of tiny marks or holes found in their surface. he started to make comparisons between eternit and leather and decided to develop the ‘leather slip stool’ as a means of presenting the contradictory characteristics of the two: softness and hardness; nature and industrialization; perfection and imperfection. these versions highlight the leather’s sewn seams and creases as intrinsic qualities of the objects. they are made in collaboration with gallery libby sellers, where nicolas le moigne held his first solo show in london and debuted the stools earlier this year. see designboom’s coverage of the exhibition here.

detail of the sewn seams and creased leather

seating surface

full view