Gold Furniture Design · 2023
Grace Lounge Chair
- A' Design Award 2023 Gold Winner in Furniture Design
- Awarded April 15, 2023
- CLIENT: Daniel Devadder Interior Design
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 300,088
- Verification code EBA9346BAA · Verify this award
About Grace Lounge Chair
Grace is a design that translates feelings that a single word can not describe. This in combination with the conviction that form does not always follow function, but should be able to follow emotion. The result is a sculpture-like design made from a 3D printed frame, partially covered with foam for added comfort and an elastic yet durable fabric. From an aesthetic point of view, it has an elegance and shape that is somehow timeless. It can match different finishes and materials and blend into different environments: from high-end use in a hotel lobby to furniture in a private home.
Emerging from the ongoing dialogue between organic form and functional necessity that has characterized progressive furniture design since the mid-twentieth century, Daniel Devadder's Grace Lounge Chair represents a sophisticated meditation on the possibilities of continuous surface design and the expressive potential of upholstered volume. The work appears to engage with the legacy of biomorphic modernism while advancing its own distinctive formal vocabulary, the flowing silhouette suggesting affinities with the sculptural seating experiments of post-war designers while asserting an unmistakably contemporary sensibility through its refined material treatment and confident geometric resolution. The choice of a rich burgundy wool textile proves particularly astute, the saturated warmth of the hue inviting tactile engagement while the felted surface quality creates subtle modulations of tone that animate the form under changing light conditions. Technically, the design demonstrates remarkable command of upholstery craft, the continuous fabric skin maintaining consistent tension across complex compound curves without visible seams or interruptions, an achievement that speaks to sophisticated pattern-making and construction methodology. The tripartite rhythm of the upper edge, rising to three organic peaks that define backrest and armrests as unified elements rather than discrete components, establishes a visual melody that guides the eye around the form while communicating the ergonomic proposition of embracing support. One might observe how the designer appears to have discovered the form through a process of sculptural intuition, the result feeling less like imposed geometry than revealed essence, as if the chair always existed latent within the material waiting to be uncovered. The interplay between the welcoming interior hollow and the assertive exterior volume creates productive spatial dialogue, inviting the viewer to imagine the experience of being held within its generous curves. What relationship, one might ask, does this object propose between body and furniture, between the human form and the designed environment that receives it?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Grace provides a certain wow factor and the way it is interpreted changes from person to person, from feeling to feeling, making it a unique experience.
An experience that will always be linked to your thoughts and how you feel. - Dimensions & Packaging
- Width 900mm x Depth 910mm x Height 680mm
- Tags
- Furniture, chair, productdesign, lounge, seating, indoor, organic, 3Dprint, stereolithography, Belgium
- Production Technology
- 3D printed structure. The material used is called Tusk SolidGrey3000 which is the world's first Stereolithography material that combines a high degree of stiffness with high impact resistance, available exclusively at Materialise.
The chair was tested from 2000N to 6000N. The displacement in the seating area ranges from 2mm to 5mm (for 2000N and 6000N respectively) and 3.5mm to 11mm at the top of the back rest.
The fabric used for the manual upholstery is Tonus 4, colour 0610, from Kvadrat because of its flexibility and durability. On the outsides of the design, high resilience foam is used for added comfort. - Design Challenge
- Finding a material that could follow the shapes while having the strength and rigidity to support the weight of an adult without deforming.
He wanted to use a fully recycled plastic to 3D print the design. However, this was not yet possible with the available materials, which at the same time had to meet the necessary strength requirements, etc.
He had the chair upholstered. Even though an elaboration without any upholstery would be perfectly conceivable.
If a pattern would be cut by machine, some details from the upholstery could be finished in a more refined way. - Project Duration
- End of December 2020: First sketch.
January 2021: First digital plans.
June 17, 2021: 3D printed structure was delivered.
March 11, 2022: Collection of the fully upholstered and finished chair in Antwerp. - Operation Flow
- As you walk around it, from every angle you discover something new that changes the interpretation of what you see. Some may recognise a bird, a plant, a child may think of a ghost. This gives the design a certain personality and soul.
It has an elegance and form that somehow is timeless. It could go with different finishes and materials and fit in different settings. From high-end use in the lobby of a hotel to furniture in a private home.
Even when not in use, the design leaves behind a kind of sculpture that enhances the space it resides in. - Research
- The design arises as a reflection of emotions that you cannot capture with a simple word, but rather express through a movement, a certain flow. The spiritual, indescribable and mysterious is what resulted in the design.
- Inspiration
- Grace was a way to translate feelings and emotions a single word can not describe.
Inspired by nature with its complexity hidden behind elegant and flawless forms.
This in combination with the conviction that form doesn't and shouldn't always follow function, but rather should be able to follow emotion. They merge together. It's something you strongly see in dance. Ballet and tango for example. Translating emotions and feelings by transcending oneself in a form or movement. - Image Credits
- Ypsilon Business Photography, 2022
Colors of Grace Lounge Chair
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Award-Winning Custom Furniture Design
We create bespoke furniture that transcends function to embody emotion and soul. Drawing inspiration from nature's organic forms, our designs enhance spaces with sculptural elegance. Each piece is carefully crafted to reflect your unique vision and environment.
G0E23 ShopDesign Interview about Grace Lounge Chair
The sudden death of a family member caused me to reflect on life and how fast it can be taken away from us.
I wanted to create something that would be able to capture and translate those powerful feelings, emotions and thoughts.
I wanted to create something that would be able to capture and translate those powerful feelings, emotions and thoughts.
I wanted to reflect and translate feelings in an elegant, continuous movement or form.
I would like to see it being produced and sold globally. Maybe have a limited edition series as well.
Time will tell.
Time will tell.
I drew the first sketch somewhere at the end of December 2020.
January 2021 I had the first digital plans.
June 17, 2021 the 3D printed structure was delivered to my house.
Finally, I collected the fully upholstered and finished chair in Antwerp, Belgium on March 11, 2022.
January 2021 I had the first digital plans.
June 17, 2021 the 3D printed structure was delivered to my house.
Finally, I collected the fully upholstered and finished chair in Antwerp, Belgium on March 11, 2022.
I created this chair as a goal I have set for myself.
I wanted to deliver something to the world that would forever be linked to my name.
I wanted to deliver something to the world that would forever be linked to my name.
I would like to sell the production rights so that the chair can be produced and sold globally.
Nothing really, it just happened.
We could say it was God's "grace" that made me do it. Pun intended.
We could say it was God's "grace" that made me do it. Pun intended.
I guess everything I consumed in the form of books, video's, visits, music, etc. over the past few years led to the creation of this design.
Nobody in particular. I believe this design has an elegance and form that somehow is timeless. It could go with different finishes and materials and fit in different settings. From high-end use in the lobby of a hotel to furniture in a private home.
It provides a certain wow factor and the way it is interpreted changes from person to person, from feeling to feeling, making it a unique experience. When you walk around it, you discover something new from every angle that could change your interpretation of what you see, which I believe gives the design a certain personality and soul. It is more than an object that you can simply label as a "lounge chair”.
It has multiple meanings, some I will not give away.
But mainly grace as in being gracious, linked to it's forms.
It also comes from the "grace" of God for giving me the talent to create this chair. For which I'm grateful.
But mainly grace as in being gracious, linked to it's forms.
It also comes from the "grace" of God for giving me the talent to create this chair. For which I'm grateful.
Vectorworks for everything related to 2D and 3D design.
Its complexity hidden behind elegant and flawless forms.
I collaborated with Materialise NV for their 3D printing services.
Sophie Doore from Cover & Couch did the upholstery
Sophie Doore from Cover & Couch did the upholstery
Huge. Basically the whole design is created with modern day technology.
Materialise was given carte blanche to choose which printing technology and material they would apply. Because of the build size they selected Stereolithography (SLA) and Tusk Somos Solidgrey3000. They selected SLA because of the build size and isotropic characteristic of the printing technology, Solidgrey because it’s a robust and stiff material which works well for functional prototypes.
The difficulty was to find a material that could follow the given shapes while having the strength and rigidity to bear the weight of an adult without deforming.
I felt this design had something special, something I wanted to share with the world.
The whole process went smoothly. I can call myself lucky to have worked with amazing people during the process.