Press Release
A' Design Award in Furniture Design Goes to Memphis Folding Chair by Nora Voon
Nora Voon of Noda Designs recognized for furniture design by the international grand jury of the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 28, 2022 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the A' Design Award in the Furniture Design category for Memphis Folding Chair by Nora Voon of Noda Designs. The result belongs to the 2021 - 2022 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The A' Design Award Explained
The Iron A' Design Award is awarded to good designs that meet the rigorous professional and industrial standards set by the A' Design Awards. This recognition is reserved for works that demonstrate a solid understanding of design principles and show creativity within their execution. Recipients of the Iron A' Design Award are acknowledged for their practical innovations and contributions to their respective fields, providing solutions that improve quality of life and foster positive change. These designs are a testament to the skill and dedication of their creators, showcasing their ability to address real-world challenges through thoughtful design.
More About Memphis Folding Chair
The simple yet elegant design is handcrafted in rustproof stainless steel in powder coated finish. Inspired from a paperclip and childhood candies, this a stackable folding chair that has a very clean and minimal frame design. The idea is to make a folding chair that pays attention to detail like the exposed brass screws and the groove throughout the frame of the chair. The profile is very simple and was designed intentionally to make it look almost like a line drawing therefore drawing the viewer to look closer at the details. The chair can be easily flat packed or stacked for large shipment
About Nora Voon
Nora Voon is the Founder and Principal of Noda Designs. A graduate of Inchbald School of Design in London, UK, she was the recipient of the prestigious Fox Linton award for her innovative commercial design for Preen Fashion House. Working with artisans and designers, her projects span across the globe in Europe, Asia, Middle East and N. America. Deeply inspired by her travels, her love of traditional craftsmanship, bold colours and graphic organic motifs, you can feel her passion and sneaky sense of humour in the beautiful materials she chooses, the objects she crafts, the spaces she manifests.
About Noda Designs
Noda Designs distinguishes itself through a blend of global inspiration, mischievous high-style, and a keen eye for detail. Based in Toronto but with a worldwide reach, their designs are enriched by their travels, incorporating diverse cultural influences
Award Record
Nora Voon of Noda Designs is a winner of 1 A' Design Award, including this recognition.
About the A' Furniture Design Award
The A' Furniture Design Award is an international furniture competition recognizing good furniture designs by best furniture designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to furniture designers, product designers, industrial design studios and furniture brands from all countries. Typical entries include chairs, tables, sofas, beds, cabinets and shelves. The awarded furniture designs are published at https://designers.org/design-category/furniture
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/135056
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/135056
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!135056
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/286751
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://nodadesigns.com/
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Memphis Folding Chair
- Function
- Folding Chair
- Category
- Furniture Design
- Discipline
- Industrial Design
- Industry
- Furniture & Home
- Colors
- Lavender, Light Gray, Royal Blue, White Smoke and Silver
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Nora Voon
- Country
- Canada
- Brand
- Noda Designs
- Recognition
- A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2021 - 2022
- Design ID
- #135056
Credits
- Image Credits
- Images #1 to #5: render by Katie Zhang video credit: Katie Zhang
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- This is a stackable folding chair that has a very clean and minimal frame design. The idea is to make a folding chair that has attention to details like the exposed brass screws and the groove throughout the frame of the chair. The profile is very simple and was designed intentionally to make it look almost like a line drawing therefore draws the viewer to look closer at the details. Memphis can be easily flat packed or stacked for large shipment orders and easy for storage as you can hang them on the wall when not using to save space.
- Inspiration
- The Memphis chair is an updated modern take on the folding chair. The simple yet elegant design is handcrafted in rustproof stainless steel in powder coated finish. Inspired from a paperclip and childhood candies, I wanted to create a folding chair that is minimal but yet substantial with attention to detail like the grooves around the chair frame. Anchored together with exposed brass fittings and screws for that extra special touch. The chair is stackable, therefore making it easy for storage (hung) and comes in 5 colours and can easily be shipped in a flat pack.
- Research
- When we were working on a commercial project recently and we realized there aren't any good looking fun folding chairs that are good for commercial use such as cafes, bistros, or even public spaces. I embarked on finding a solution for this but also wanted to make sure it can be easily shipped in a flat pack format. We spoke to a few manufacturers and because of the groove we wanted to make sure the corrosion is at a minimal since we wanted this to be a contract furniture which is why the frame is rounded so that accumulation of water is not possible.
- Challenge
- The hardest part of this creative challenge is making sure that the frame is strong enough to support the chair - that is why stainless steel came to mind which is a solid and strong material to work with and if painted correctly with powder coating, it can minimize on corrosion. Using stainless steel means the cost is higher but still doable for a mid range product. We showed it on social media and the response was great with lots of enquiries on this product and also a manufacturer in New York wanted to produce them.
- Realization and Technology
- Memphis chair is made using stainless steel and has rust proof powder coating. The frame is very simple with a groove in the middle and anchored together using the brass screws and fittings. Collapsible into a flat surface so that it is easy for shipping. For storage, it can be stored laid flat and stacked or it can be hung on a wall to save space. The reason for not having a back rest because I wanted to have a design that is very minimal as folding chairs should be and wanted the form to take centre stage with the idea that it can look almost transparent in a way. The missing back rest does not effect the comfort of the chair.
- Operation and Interaction
- The operation is simple, folded chair can be operated using one simple movement by unfolding the chair. The ease of this chair and the simplicity of it makes it a timeless piece, and the fact that one can hang it on a wall to reduce storage space is ideal for small apartments or homes.
- Project Duration and Location
- I started this project out of necessity on January 11th 2022 and did some research on materials, forms and fittings throughout for 2 weeks. The design concept was done in Toronto, Canada but manufacturing will be done in Indonesia.
- Specifications
- W410 x D400 x H815 mm
- Keywords
- folding chair, chair, patio chair, bistro chair, cafe chair, powder coated
