Design: Lightbulb Chair
Materials: Vintage schoolhouse chair, powdercoated metal, spray paint, varnish
Designer: Hopscotch Road (Jennifer Binford, Jamie Fisher, Emily Low Johnson)
"Here's the appraisal of a well-meaning (if irritatingly candid) designer friend: "Your elevator pitch? It's super. As long as you're riding to the top of the Sears Tower." Okay, first, ouch. And second, he's right. When asked to describe our work, we're often less than succinct. But in our defense, a lot goes into our pieces."
"Take this chair. First we drove a few hundred miles to liberate it from the dusty confines of a long-shuttered schoolhouse. Next we reconditioned it to restore its sturdy good looks and matter-of-fact charm. Finally we hand stenciled our original design onto its elaborately grained, bent-ply curves.
So what is that, exactly? Vintage furniture restyling? Found surface design? Functional art?
Not to mention that we collect all kinds of furniture (steel tanker desks, old chemistry lab tables, metal lockers), draw on a big portfolio of images (our own designs, antique photographs, old maps and textbooks), and practice a variety of application techniques (hand-cut stencils, hand-drawn illustrations, and fancy digital rendering).
So here's what we've settled on. See what you think:
At Hopscotch Road, we create and collect sensational designs and use them to style modern, off-beat, completely original furniture and accessories.
Not bad. But if you find yourself in an elevator with us, we can't promise we'll stop there."
Designer: Hopscotch Road (Jennifer Binford, Jamie Fisher, Emily Low Johnson) Link: www.hopscotchroad.com Location: Austin, TX
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I like the light bulbs on the back of the chair - a lot - but I'm not crazy about the 120V/60W part on the seat.
I like the idea of stenciling, but I don't like the subject matter. I work in energy efficiency, and I'm really, really tired of the canonization of the incandescent bulb. I would be a much bigger fan of a different design.
Its a chair. With paint on it. I'd call this "decoration", not "design." Sorry.
What ladykatey said.
With so many chair designs in the world, we just don't need this one.
Love the retro look and upcycling of old school furniture to make it modern. Good work, Hopschotch Road!
I love it! We could all use a little "light" fun...
Nice mixture of retro and sleekness. Fun!
I think it is a new take on the classroom chair, that can also be a lesson in itself. It shows kids to recycle, and reuse!! I love it!!
60W? Is this intended as planned obsolescence for chairs? :D
It's like a little chair poem that allows you to contemplate the deeper meaning.
I think it is trendy and something new. I like it
I love this little chair...It's charming, functional, and a conversation starter all in one!
great, fun design!
I love the lightbulbs!!!
The warm honey glow of this petite chair is completely heart warming. I love the care that has gone into salvaging such a sleek little design, and the thought of all the people that used it at another part of it's life. The strong graphic type is a great contrast, and I love the whimsy of the lightbulbs. This is a seat that I would enjoy quite a lot. Nice job!
I love this chair! The black graphic design on the warm wood of the chair seat and chair back combines beautifully with the black metal portions of the chair. Plus, the lighbulb theme seems to fit this former school chair perfectly. Thanks for sharing this fun and functional piece!
sounds a bit like bored yuppies who don't mind driving hours and hours to "liberate" antiquey things from abandoned buildings.
Wow... a lot of haters out there. But I like it; it feels 'fun' to me. Plus, nobody ever agrees on art, and that's the way it should stay!
Creative design. We love the lighbulbs on the chair back.
Great design! Sooo smart.
I think there's a performance aspect here too... it reminds me of really caring about which cup I got to drink out of when I was a kid. I can see some really sly comments being made by who gets to sit in this chair.