As the International Festival of Landscape Architecture approaches, Street Furniture Australia is gearing up to release prototypes of the fixed, yet movable, Flower Chair.
Last month StreetChat brought you our White Paper on the movable seat, exploring how public spaces become more inviting with the ability to decide your position.
Flower Chair is a novel approach to the movable seat that is fixed to the ground, yet allows sitters to adjust their outlook.
The seat will swivel 360 degrees, empowering sitters to look for the best view, interact with neighbours or enjoy some solo time, and change their position in relation to the sun.
Fixed at the base, it provides an opportunity for placemakers to experiment with movable seating, with the added peace of mind that their assets cannot ‘walk’.
Given the option, people will almost always move a chair before they sit, often just a little and even if it doesn’t seem to accomplish anything.
The Flower Chair was designed by Josh Flowers, a former University of New South Wales industrial design student, for Street Furniture Australia’s Sense of Place competition.
The brief challenged students to design a street furniture product that gives people a reason to stop and become involved in a public space.
Flower Chair prototypes will aim to do just that at the 2016 International Festival of Landscape Architecture in Canberra this October.
“The Flower Chair is designed to activate and uplift public spaces,” says Flowers.
“The process of designing it at Street Furniture has been incredibly exciting, from early mockups to machined prototypes. We have been been meticulous in the details and passionate about the resolution of the concept.”
Street Furniture Australia’s Head of Design Phill Slattery and industrial designer Michael White have been working on the strength, reliability and comfort of the seat in the lead up to its debut.
Catch the Flower Chair’s premiere at one of Street Furniture Australia’s several festival pop up parks on October 27 to 30, with the program and tickets now available through AILA.
With the theme Not In My Backyard, the festival will host 20 events to connect the public with landscape architects, curated by Creative Director Richard Weller and AILA.
Flowers will receive royalties for his Flower Chair design, while achieving a dream to see people interact with his seat in the public domain.
Flower Chair concept
