100 Chairs - Friends & Associates
Intended or not, I couldn’t keep the Catholic Church out of my mind at every Design Week event I’ve attended. Between the stained glass ceiling of the NGV’s Great Hall evoking cathedrals, and the inherent, site based religiosity of both Alpha60’s Chapter House playing host to Jon Goulder and the Abbotsford Convent, Christianity was omnipresent in a way that contemporary art and design eschews. I spent a good chunk of January in Rome, and my art history brain has been stuck on the (over 20) churches and cathedrals I visited, not to mention the prevalence of iconography throughout the museums and galleries. Though I haven’t seen da Vinci’s Last Supper in person, it was that scene that Goulder’s behemoth of a table immediately evoked when I made it up the stairs into Alpha60’s iconic Flinders Lane space. When Bec and I crossed paths for but a fleeting moment at Abbotsford Convent (me heading out of 100 Chairs, her heading in) a thought grew legs - what are the 13 chairs I would put on one side of the one table in Melbourne large enough to seat 26?
Without further ado, my 13 seats, assigned according to apostle positioning in the fresco:
Dowel Jones’ Stanley lounge is going on the edge. Its size and heft mean that putting it anywhere near the centre is a bit impractical, and it befits someone who though incredibly enmeshed in the politics of this dinner party, is happier to sit back and watch it play out from afar. Great chair for sitting back with a glass of wine.
James Walsh’s Offcuts is skinny, fitting well next to a larger chair, but also an ingenious display of carpentry and the brilliance of reworking actual offcuts. The wonky shape feels like it’s reaching out to shake your hand, and it's great for whomever is most likely to move their chairs around with them, not wanting to miss a moment of the drama.
WAKA Chair by Isabel Avendaño-Hazbún is next, providing a textural relief from all the wood and sharp angles we’ve had so far. Made out of rope from recycled tires and beech, the roundness of the base/seat and circular detail on the back feel every bit as structural as the wood thus far, but add dimensionality and a textural relief.
“Pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name” from BIEËMELE is weird, wonderful, and a little scary. A cross between a chair and one of the Where the Wild Things Are monsters, I might see this chair in my nightmares, but that haunting is well deserved and very welcome.
For our next two attendees, they’re sharing the two seater Tra Noi by Iva Foschia for Arthur G. Given the biblical intonations of this entire exercise, how could I not love this cozy, wooly seating option? The colours, the softness, the togetherness all drew me in. In a sea of industrial starkness, Foschia’s colour and warmth stood out. I’ll also give it props as our Lowbrow seat, but only for when we’ve finished our writings for the week.
In the middle is Barnabas Dean’s FFF#1. The light, the height, the fuzzy orange backing is all commanding attention and deserving of the centre of attention.
Tom Jin’s Strip Chair is gorgeous, but makes me doubt that I could use it for its intended purpose. The subtle pink almost seems to glow, a beacon of a different sort than Dean’s, but the resin makes me doubt the weight it can hold. Gorgeous, but I wont believe its lounging capabilities until I see them.
Windsock Chair, a nylon creation by Makushla Harper is almost human in its form. More than a chair, it feels like someone wearing a red cloak, waiting to jump out. The construction echoes the shape of someone seated placidly, accepting their fate, gazing outward.
Almost Grecian, at first glance I thought Oliver Wilcox’s Linenfold Chair could be carved out of marble. Even on closer examination, it wouldn’t be out of place in the Grecian sun nowadays. It’s a perfect bringing together of new and ancient.
Paladin Chair from ceramicist Alexandra Howie is angelic. Crafted of stoneware clay, the seat is something you would expect to see in a da Vinci painting, tucked away in a corner, or a resting place for a putto.
Nadine Al Irani’s KURSI is a feat of nuanced building and craft. The inset diamonds of contrasting wood, the gorgeous play of shapes, the legs with such sharp corners you could almost use them as clubs, and the corded texture of the upholstery make for a perfect chair.
We’re capping off this dinner party with a double seat, but this time for just one. Best Friends Chair from Nascent Space and Liane was a contender for multiple spots in this list, but goes here for how it evokes a saw, a cleaving in two, and two halves of a whole all at once. It needs space to breathe at the end of this table, and needs to be included in this list for both its title and its macabre reality.
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I would be remiss to not mention that Rong Chen’s game (posted on his Instagram, Bec played yesterday) also inspired me to actually put pen to paper with who goes where. If you did not go to Sunday School or have religion classes throughout Senior School, you can learn more about the iconography and attributes of each of the apostles just about anywhere and suss out why each of these chairs were chosen.
If you send me a message with who you’re seating in the 13, I’ll respond with mine (other than the apostles, who have been assigned a chair based on their positioning in the world’s most famous fresco). Was this crazy? Yes. Was it entirely for me? Also yes.
Thank you for coming to my dinner party. I hope none of you will betray me.
100 Chairs is on at Abbotsford Convent until May 24.