Silver Office Furniture Design · 2023
Tangens Furniture Collection
by Sara Kele
- A' Design Award 2023 Silver Winner in Office Furniture Design
- Awarded April 15, 2023
- CLIENT: Sarakele Studio
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 938,655
- Verification code E299C0990E · Verify this award
About Tangens Furniture Collection
Tangens is an office furniture system that was developed with the rapidly changing work environments and today's circumstances in mind. The aim was to merge the comfort of home offices with the modularity required for modern, agile, and sustainable workspaces. The design was inspired by a focus on the value of human relationships. The metaphor of embracing also appears on the objects themselves. The curved tubular frame recalls the graphic Bauhaus world, and sustainable materials show reverence for the power of nature.
The Tangens Furniture Collection by Sara Kele emerges from a contemporary design sensibility that seeks to reconcile the clean geometric vocabulary of modernist furniture with a warmer, more emotionally accessible material and chromatic palette. This modular seating element demonstrates a refined understanding of how industrial processes and artisanal textiles might collaborate to produce objects of both visual sophistication and tactile invitation. The continuous tubular steel frame, finished in a carefully calibrated salmon-pink powder coating, establishes an architectural envelope that reads simultaneously as structure and ornament, its curved transitions at the armrests introducing a softened geometry that tempers industrial rigor with organic flow. The upholstery program employs a considered tonal progression through terracotta and rose variations, unified by their shared warm undertones while introducing sufficient contrast to articulate the distinct functional zones of seat, back, and accent cushion. The bouclé textile selection contributes both visual texture and implied tactile comfort, its nubby weave surface catching light in ways that animate the otherwise simple volumetric forms. One might observe affinities with mid-century Italian rationalism softened through contemporary Nordic sensibilities, creating a hybrid vocabulary suited to both residential and commercial applications. The visible fastening hardware speaks to an ethos of material honesty and potential modularity, suggesting a system designed for flexibility and longevity. How might such thoughtfully crafted objects contribute to the creation of spaces that nurture contemplation, conversation, and human connection?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Tangens is an office furniture system born out of today’s circumstances and rapidly changing work environments. Our goal is to combine the comfort of a home office with the modularity required for the contemporary agile workspace with a sustainable approach.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Armchair: 800 / 930 x 800 x 430 / 730 / 1300 mm
Armchair with storage table: 1140 x 800 x 430 / 730 / 1300 mm
Sofa: 1600/ 1730 x 800 x 730 / 1300 mm
Small tables: 800 x 360 x 410 mm, 440 x 360 x 660 mm, 440 x 360 x 750 mm
Desk: 1400 x 750 x 760 mm
Storage box: 800 x 430 / 750 x 320 mm
Shelf: 800 x 300 x 340 / 430 mm
Divider: 800 x 320 x 1500 mm, 640 x 320 x 1800 mm - Tags
- furniture design, home office, sustainable design, modular, agile, product design, sustainable materials
- Production Technology
- Quality, durability, sustainability were key factors during manufacturing, while the ability to be disassembled to parts was important during design for facilitating future repairs. Inside the seating surfaces is a durable wave spring load-bearing held by sintered steel pipes, which are carried out on a modern automated line that recycles the powder coating excess. We use highly resistant fabrics made of recycled plastic and woven wool. The fillers also include recycled felt and ground materials.
- Design Challenge
- Intensively searching for PU foam substitutions, the studio found many great technologies, such as algae-based granulate made foam. But each one turned out to be only available for different areas (eg. shoesole) or not ready for industrial usage. Finally, the team returned to old traditional solutions, such as wavespring and wood-base framing for the recycled foam. A second challenge was to find a partner holding similar values for the upholstery fabric, which eventually was found in a Swiss weaving mill.
- Project Duration
- The project was created from September 2020 to February 2021 in Budapest and Tata cities in Hungary, within the framework of Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency's DesignLAB incubator program - which aim is to connect manufacturers with designers in product development processes. The project was exhibited in Maison&Objet in Paris, Downtown Dubai in Dubai and S/ALON in Budapest. And won the Red Dot Best of the Best Award in Design Concept Category, got Special Mention in Furniture Systems category of the A+Product Awards, was Finalist in the Flexible Design category of the A+Product Award, won Big See Product Design Award and Good Design® Award.
- Operation Flow
- Tangens the ideal equipment for an agile workspace. The collection includes seating and storage furniture, tables, and room dividers. Not only do the elements match in style, through easy combination opportunities provides a solution for every aspect of office life: from isolated thinking through confidential discussions to group work. Being in the office means sitting. That is why we focus on this area exactly. The hard surfaces, the slightly elevated seating level facilitates concentration.
- Research
- The aim of the research was efficiency in relation to space arrangement in agile offices. Analysing studies, personal interviews and on location observations were the mainly used methods. According the results the aim of the project was to leave freedom of choice to the customer, maximising variability.
Conducted personal testing of organic or recycled upholstery. Collaboration with Materi’O Library the team searched for alternatives to PU foams. As a result the design was focused on traditional (pre-artificial) materials and layering techniques with recycled layers. - Inspiration
- The Tangens furniture product range embraces the value of human relationships. Tangens: touch and togetherness. We arrived at the tangible structure of the furniture by delving deep into the metaphors of embracing and touching. This motif is also apparent on the objects themselves. The curved tubular frame wrapping around shows a respect for tradition, recalling the graphic Bauhaus world. The use of sustainable materials shows reverence for the future, a homage to the power of nature.
- Image Credits
- Image #1 : HFDA, Milan Racmolnar
Image #2 : Janos Kmetyko
Image #3 : HFDA, Milan Racmolnar
Image #4 : Janos Kmetyko
Image #5 : Janos Kmetyko - Patents
- Copyrights belong to Sara Kele, 2021
Patented. 008918635-0001/008918635-0005, Sára Kele, 2022.