STYLO: Figure 31
Designing a seating construct and modeling it out of freshly-cut green wood.
Team / Spring 2025 / 6 weeks
Our goal was to design and build a seating construct for a residence hall lounge from a single round of salvaged campus wood. This project presented many challenges; designing for multiple stakeholders, understanding green woodworking, and considering human factors.
This project was a collaborative effort with Chapin Henry and Jacob Camarata. We worked together throughout the design process, from research and ideation to prototyping.
Sketching and Ideation
As sketches progressed, certain concepts began to take shape and guide our direction. Refining the joint where three pieces of wood intersect became an early turning point in the project. Each iteration tested a different approach to balancing strength, ease of construction, and visual clarity. As we sketched, certain solutions began to resolve structural challenges while simplifying the overall form. These decisions not only strengthened the joint itself but also shaped the direction of the entire chair, establishing rules for proportion, alignment, and the way parts relate to each other.
Each piece of the chair was carved from green wood sourced directly from campus logs. Instead of relying on CNC tools, we shaped and joined every part in the woodshop to bring the design to life. Working this way revealed how the wood wanted to move and respond, forcing us to adapt and refine our approach as we went. The process was slow but rewarding, bridging design intent with craftsmanship and giving the final chair a sense of honesty that only comes from hands-on making.
KeyShot Renderings
