Home Furnishings: Mag-Neato

Home Furnishings: Mag-Neato

For almost a decade Dwell has printed countless examples of new furniture designs, but with a handful of exceptions, little has been offered—–to us or to you—–in the way of truly new ideas about what furniture could be or do. Digital technology and material innovation have pushed the forms and qualities of modern furniture into unexplored realms; however, the industry is still dominated by a staple diet of types: chairs, sofas, tables, and storage. Arguing against the creation of new chair designs would be like debating the need for new novels. That notwithstanding, we still wondered what furniture could be without imposing any constraints on the designer. To find out, we turned to hometown superheroes Council—–the San Francisco furniture-design company founded by Derek Chen and winner of the 2009 ICFF Editors Award for furniture.
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Derek Chen is the founder and creative force behind Council, a furniture brand he started in 2007 to bring a more international sensibility of design (and an all-star roster of designers) Stateside. Here, he offers his insight into the evolution of furniture and proposes a new design—–Magneto. "The types of furniture we have are a direct response to the types of things we do, and these evolve over time.

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Sam Grawe
Sam Grawe served as the Editor-in-Chief of Dwell from 2006 to 2011.

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