疫情在英國肆虐，不同地區經過多次lockdown，倫敦設計師Tom and Will Butterfield趁著世紀難得一見的空檔，早於去年中提出名為《19 Chairs》的慈善活動，邀請英國19名設計師參加，將簡單的木椅改造，展現出19種可能性，在悶悶不樂的日子，帶來視覺衝擊。
Tom and Will Butterfield是一對兄弟，分別是產品及平面設計師，在疫情之下感到無所事事，忽發奇想推出這個《19 Chairs》企劃，除了讓其他設計師發揮創意，拍賣過後籌得的款項，也為關注老人的組織Age UK及關注少數族裔的Resourcing Racial Justice籌款。
企劃第一階段，是Butterfield兄弟的創作，由於lockdown他們只能採用最基本的材料造椅：以27 x 27毫米的木頭，連續19日創作出19款不同椅子。第二階段則找來全國19位不同範疇的設計師將椅子重新改造，有些設計師在椅子上披上不同材質，有些將椅子形狀完全改造，還有些連椅子的原型都毫不保留，驚喜連連。
Chair 1 of 19: The Commode by Harry Grundy
“Mewling, puking, whining, shining, signing, bearded, seeking full. Lean and slippered, manly, childish, youthful, shrunk, seeking, full.”
Chair 2 of 19: Rebirth by Max Siedentopf
“Remembering the early life of the chair, before it got assembled into something to sit on, long before it it was cut into geometrical planks held together by a few dozen screws, this very chair started out as a little seedling below the earth which grew into a beautiful tree out in nature’s wild. To give this chair new life I decided to perform a very complicated magic trick which turned the chair back into a younger and rebellious version of itself.”
Chair 3 of 19: Tired, but Quite Optimistic by Benjamin Edgar
“A portrait of a moment in time. The seating surface “droops” in gradient from rested to exhausted, a result of both stress and progress. All rendered in brilliantly optimistic blue.”
Chair 4 of 19: Extruded Chair with Blob Hand Rest by James Shaw
“I reconfigured this chair using waste plastic and a self-built extruding machine. I produced a new back for the chair with waste HDPE blobby feet and a creepy hand rest from waste polypropylene.”
Chair 5 of 19: Jill by Anthony Williams
“The subject of the charcoal drawing is Jill Bays, who is eighty-nine and my wife’s mother. She is an accomplished watercolourist and author of seven books on watercolour painting.”
Chair 6 of 19: Theo and The Chair by Wilfrid Wood
“I drew my bf in the nuddy mucking around with the chair.”
Chair 7 of 19: Cocoon by Isabel + Helen
“Mimicking nature, the machine methodically wraps its inhabitant… enveloping and swaddling the object within… over time, transforming and manipulating its shape and form. The chair’s skeleton becomes encased within the machine’s tightly woven web, creating a soft outer shell for the angular chair.”
Chair 8 of 19: Sun Chair by Morag Myerscough
Chair 9 of 19: Grandmas Antique by Brandon Carlton
“Influenced by my grandmas love for gold. I grew up watching her paint her toes whilst sitting in our living room, which was full of antiques.”
Chair 10 of 19: Rubber Chair by Sabine Marcelis
“I wanted to introduce a level of comfort with a simple singular addition. A sheet of rubber wrapped around both the seat and backrest. The subtle translucency of the rubber plays with the graphic lines of the chair structure when the sun hits it.”
Chair 11 of 19: Raplapla by Jean Jullien
“I wanted to translate visually the feeling you get when you’re really tired and finally find a good seat to sit on and you can really let go.”
Chair 12 of 19: Support The Elderly by Helmut Smits
“As it’s important to have regular exercise, especially for older people I transformed my chair into an active resting tool. I made two walking sticks out of it, so not just one person can sit down, but two can start walking.”
Chair 13 of 19: Mix Chair by Ashley Williams
“I took the same patchwork concept we use to make our knit jumpers for the panels of the chair. Instead of fashioning them into shape, we linked them into rectangular flat pieces and upholstered it from there.”
Chair 14 of 19: The Werther’s Original Massage Chair by Henry Gorse
“I had to turn my chair into The Werther’s Original Massage Chair didn’t I! Great memories are attached to the caramel butterscotch from whenever my family would visit my grandparents, the candy’s would be the first thing offered along with a cup of tea. The chair only exists as a photograph and of course also another original Werther’s memory!”
Chair 15 of 19: Chair Dunistrishuns by Joe Lycett
“Here is the dunistititrishnuss for the chair if you want to make the chair baby you wanna make a chair baby you can make a chair if you wanna baby.”
Chair 16 of 19: Shag Chair by Emma Brewin
“Made from fur scraps from my shag scarfs and pillows from when I decided to make a bed out of pillows then cut it in half when it was finished.”
Chair 17 of 19: Booster Seat by Nicole McLaughlin
“I updated the idea of the booster seat with new functionality through upcycled materials. The addition of newspapers and foam inserts provide a different level of comfort and practicality. While the clear storage pouches, crossword puzzles, and magnifying glass help exercise the mind and boost brain cells.”
Chair 18 of 19: Foil by Tom Dixon
“A seat for Buzz Aldrin.”
Chair 19 of 19: The Norns by Es Devlin
“All stories are woven from the fabric of ones that have come before. The Norns celebrates the intergenerational transmission of stories. Putting the material traces of the object’s past life on display on each of its patterned faces, the revolving lamp invokes the telling of bedtime stories – the ritual of passing meaning from one generation to the next.”
網上展覽及拍賣
日期：4月1日至30日
網址：https://19chairs.co.uk
