21-chair salute: ‘This chair’s too big, this one’s too soft, but this chair is just right’

From bathtubs to the Black Swan, IVS architects try making chairs for a building fund.

KARACHI:

If you want to raise money for a building, make chairs, decided architects with the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture. Thus was born the idea of ‘21 Chairs’, a fund-raising exhibition curated by architect Arshad Faruqui that opened on Tuesday.

IVS architects, both young and experienced, were invited to design a limited edition single-seater for the exhibit and the money raised will go to the institute’s building fund. While some architects opted to work alone, other chairs were a joint effort between artists, architects and designers.

“Every chair comes from a posture,” explained Ahmed Mian. He created ‘Challo! - Design Vision’ a multi-functional seat with three seating surfaces with architects Sehar Aziz and Sibte Sajjad. Every now and then a loud thud made the crowd start as the chair was turned over. On one side it was a stool, on another a lounger, and on the final turn it became a rather strange ‘squatter’.

Curiously enough, the exact same concept was employed by architects Ahsan Najmi, Sara Najmi Bilgrami and Zayd Bilgrami in ‘3=1’. They claimed their inspiration were rocks and how you have to try different positions till you find a comfortable spot. Mian, however, cited local culture and how people in rural areas prefer to squat in a position that people from the city find awkward.

The velvet lined ‘Is “The Hubble” a bubble?’ was popular among visitors. One student sank into it exclaiming, “I could get used to this!”.

But in the end, it was the unsightly ‘Dolly Chair’ that won everyone over. At Rs85,000 it was among the most expensive pieces on display. Vertical rods of iron, tipped with black rubber balls, formed the seat. The back support consisted simply of wires draped in a woollen weave and hung with small misshapen cushions. At first sight, it looked like a medieval torture device. However, as the enthusiastic Tariq Alexander Qaiser explained, the chair was a physical “contradiction”. Far from impaling the sitter, the rods support weight evenly and were more comfortable than a squashy sofa. And as the sitter leaned back, a relaxing aroma was released from the pressure as the cushions were stuffed with an assortment of spices selected by artist Shehnaz Ismail.

“It’s not called Dolly because it’s a girl chair, you know!” Qaiser informed the crowd happily, referring to the hidden wheels at the bottom, making it both portable and functional. “The very word ‘kursi’ means more than just a chair,” he added. “In our culture it is a symbol of power.” The outward ugliness of this seat pokes fun at politicians and their “hypocritical” sugar-coating of ugly circumstances.

All over the gallery people plopped down on chair after chair, loudly proclaiming their opinions. Architects added to the din, inviting neighbouring chair-makers to have a go at theirs, like proud parents showing off their children. The ‘Black Swan’, a curvy structure inspired by the Hollywood hit movie, was not as comfortable as it appeared, forcing the sitter into a very straight posture.

The ‘R4 Environment’ bathtub-cum-lounger focused on the four Rs for re-look, reduce, reuse, and recycle. The ‘V Connect’, illuminated by disco lights, went in the opposite direction. The ‘Tot Chair’ a right-angled wooden seat with intimidating carvings was reminiscent of an electric chair but turned out to be a very functional armchair replete with a tiny overhead reading light.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 6^th,  2011.