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Bent Steel Chair
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Description
Architect Bishop MacDowell
Metal Fabrication Urban Handcraft

Photography Hannah Newton

The seat of the chair is formed from black full grain saddle leather, cut, wrapped, and stitched to create a surface that rests between two bent tubular steel segments. The leather is vegetable tanned, allowing it to soften and develop character over time while maintaining durability.

In working with the steel frame, the goal was to create a leather element that complements its precision and structure. The saddle leather introduces warmth and tactility, providing a surface that changes gradually with use and touch.

The chair references bentwood furniture of the nineteenth century and modernist tubular steel designs of the early twentieth century. It is both a functional surface and a point of human contact, designed to carry the marks of its use over time.

The chair is currently in development with a local fabricator, where details of stitching, fit, and junctions continue to be refined through collaboration.

 

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