Arch2o

intersections of design and technology

undesign
carola winnie i

duality
If the title to this article could be shortened to read Design
and Technology it would still make the perfect sense to
be comprehended as something to talk of the relationship
between the two or their differences. Yet, it would go without
mention that these two entities exist as an inseparable duality
as two sides of a coin. They are respectively the male and
female of creation. It is this duality that keeps the whole
universe in balance and set in motion. The nature of their
differences and yet their compatibility renders each of them
their state of being and keeps them in a constant search for
stability. Yet, a subtle disambiguity between this duality may
result in failure and eventually the separation of the two to
seek out better compatibilities. In such cases, one or both
have the good chances of staying virgin to the world of knowledge and buried in the sands of time without being consummated. On the brighter side, a successful match ensures that
they propagate to open a world of thought and and an array
of possibilities for the two. The cycle of innovation becomes
perpetually unstoppable.

the wheel
Here is a narrative of one such successful model of this duality that can be understood through one of humanitys oldest
inventions, the wheel.
Need, being the seed of thought, grew from the necessity
to ease and pace of mobility of the hunting world back in
the ages. It dawned on man that he needed equipment that
would not stop until they wanted and yet be able to carry
them swiftly and with great ease. In such great mastery of integration it would make impossible to separate what has been
designed and what has been technologised. Today, the wheel
is the basis of 70% of inventions of components of things that
we engage with daily and integral in several sophisticated
industries such as aircraft.

a typical gear- wheeled cycle showing the mechanism of a series of wheels

http://www.cycleexif.com/horse-cycles-tourer

undesign
In an attempt to illustrate this nuptial between design and
technology, I am extracting an example of one of 20th centurys greatest designs ever made, also considered one of the
best examples of modernism in Danish design.
The Panton Chair, designed by Verner Panton in 1960s
withdrew largely from the traditional aspects of a chair that
engaged the use of three or four legs supporting a seat and
a back usually made from solid wood planks joined together
using intricate chiselling of joinery systems. He decided to
undesign the chair. Soon after the Second World War, people
considered space saving an important criteria, a thought that
was reiterated by modernist architect, Mies Van der Rohe,
and Panton belonging to the times, wanted to design a
stackable chair for this cause. He also wanted his creation to
be a single entity and without legs. With a series of sketches
to back his conviction, he attempted an initial prototype of
a single mould plastic in fiberglass . Substantially heavy, he
attempted a second prototype in polystyrene which turned
out to be a huge success and also brought about a drastic
reduction in cost through mass production. The result of this
engagement was a chair that looked like an elegant lady sitting in a gown. Pantons design impulse gave technology the
ground to show off its ground breaking capacity. The Panton
chair today sits as a timeless classic that has changed the
perception of the chair forever.

conclusion
I have come to understand the persona of Design as freespirited, impulsive and often ambitious. The most compatible
partner that she finds in technology would be truest to her
needs, sensitive to her whims, yet grounded by the laws of
science. More often in such a match, the progeny is one that
is a legacy. The sacred vows of technology and design can
never be broken.

28 sept 2014
carola@85ad.in
3

a classic dining chair

http://www.frcathcartltd.com/Harrogate_Dining_Chair/

the panton chair

http://www.thehomeonline.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=186-164