Tubular Armchair, Antigoon Edition
The O.F.I.S. Tubular Armchair serves as the definitive manifesto for the studio’s exploration into the hidden infrastructures of our built environment. Developed as a central piece of the Objects From Interstitial Space collection, it represents a radical shift in how we perceive industrial waste. The design team focused on the deconstruction of standardized ventilation systems—specifically the L-shaped galvanised steel tubes that circulate air within the interstitial gaps of modern architecture. By extracting these components from their invisible service role and placing them in the domestic spotlight, the studio challenges the hierarchy of materials in contemporary furniture design.
The Antigoon Edition, a specific iteration developed for the prestigious Mint Gallery in London, further refines this narrative. It is characterized by its bold, "handless" silhouette and a rigorous adherence to the proportions of the original industrial sections. The assembly logic is purely mechanical; the studio avoids permanent welding or adhesives, opting instead for a system of bolts and brackets that mirrors the original installation methods used by HVAC technicians. This "ready-made" approach ensures that the armchair is not just a comfortable piece of furniture, but a dismountable technical archive of its own material history.
Aesthetically, the armchair celebrates the raw, cold patina of galvanized steel, contrasting its industrial origin with the human scale of ergonomics. The design team meticulously calculated the angles of the curved sections to ensure that the oversized tubing provides a surprisingly sophisticated level of comfort. This piece has been widely recognized in international forums, from the Hardcore exhibition to Collectible in Brussels, proving that the ghosts of our infrastructure can be transformed into high-end collectible design. It stands as a testament to the studio’s "pro-cycling" philosophy, where the value of an object is derived from the intelligence of its recontextualization rather than the preciousness of its raw matter.