Iron Furniture Design · 2022

Archie Chair

by Ahmad Mirjani

A' Design Award 2022 Iron Winner in Furniture Design
Awarded April 15, 2022
CLIENT: Ahmad Mirjani
Estimated Number of Design Views: 10,366
Verification code C780DCA719 · Verify this award

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About Archie Chair

Archie is a wire chair inspired by Islamic architecture. The form revives arches and the geometry of Girih tiles, adapted to modern life. The seat components are made of welded steel wire. The wires are cut to predetermined sizes and bent without heating, and some parts must be bent by hand. A chrome or nylon coating makes the chair resistant to moisture and rust, so the chair can also be used outdoors. The negative space between the lines gives a sense of lightness. The patterns can be varied, which allows mass customization. The chair measures 520 mm by 470 mm by 800 mm.

Press Kit

Unique Properties: The chair gives a strong impression with its unique form which is inspired by Islamic architecture. In particular, the design revives the arches and art of Girih tiles (which relies heavily on geometric patterns) and is adapted to modern life.
The chair can be used for every space and due to the possible variety of patterns, this design has the great potential for mass customization.
Dimensions & Packaging: Length 520mm, Width 470mm, Height 800 mm
Tags: furniture, chair, wire chair, arch, girih, geometric pattern
Production Technology: The seat components are made of welded steel wire. The wires are cut in predetermined sizes and must be bent without any heating factor. Some of the chair components are such that bending the wires is not possible by using machines and must be done manually. By adding chrome or rilson (nylon 11) coating to the wires, the chair can be made resistant to moisture and rust, and it is possible to use the chair outdoors.
Design Challenge: The design of the chair is mainly dependent on the lines. Therefore, in the design process, it was tried to move the design lines in a way that results in an integrated structure, and finally it is aimed to achieve a new style of wire chairs.
Project Duration: The project started in January 2021 in Isfahan, Iran and finished in April 2021.
Operation Flow: The geometric patterns used in the design of the chair impress the viewer spontaneously. Furthermore, the negative space used in the design of the chair conveys a sense of lightness.
Research: The design process began with the review of furniture history and specifically mid-century modern style. In these observations, the characteristic furniture of this period and their features such as simple and clear lines, organic and geometric forms, democratic design were analyzed. Based on this, the wire chair style became the basis of the design. After that, the two architectural elements of arch and girih (strapwork) in Islamic architecture and the girih tiles were studied and further embedded into the project.
Inspiration: It was started with the study of the history of wire chairs and the designers who have worked in this field. As the design of wire chairs is highly dependent on the movement of lines, the possibility of using lines inspired by Islamic architecture was explored.
In the product design process, arches and specific geometric patterns have been the source of inspiration which are summarized in Girih.
Image Credits: Ahmad Mirjani, 2021.