Skinship chair
09Original drawings are preserved. Their embedded annotations may remain in Korean; the project narrative and figure captions are available in English. Expand “Reading this drawing” below a figure for translated main labels or a reading guide where available. Select an image to inspect it at full resolution.
A public chair that combines spatial division with the transmission of movement through an elastic backrest. Proposed for the Buildner The Architect’s Chair competition, it uses pivoting seats and a modular frame to enable indirect skinship.
Design Concept
Skinship chair is a furniture proposal that combines a partition wall with public seating. Users facing in different directions share an elastic backrest, allowing them to sense one another's pressure and movement indirectly.
The proposal approaches the theme of architecture and furniture in the Buildner The Architect’s Chair competition through the relationship between maintaining personal space and enabling interaction between users.
Spatial Boundaries
The wall separates sightlines and circulation, while a backrest that deforms with users' movements connects the spaces on either side.
“Indirect skinship” is a design concept in which users sense one another's movement through furniture without direct physical contact. The proposal maintains distance between users while allowing them to register another person's presence.
Occupied Space
The initial study examined the space occupied by a chair. The spatial conditions around it were mapped in relation to bodily contact, arm reach, changes in posture, and field of vision.
The extent of this occupied space was understood to vary with use. This became the basis for examining how a chair affects its surroundings and the relationships between users.
Reading this drawing
From left to right: contact with the body (cushion and backrest); reach with an outstretched arm (armrest, functions and rocking chair); reach through changes in posture (reclining, footrest and height); and visual reach (wheels and rotation). The four diagrams compare how a chair extends the space occupied by its user.
Transmitting Movement
Two ways of transmitting movement were compared during the concept stage. One used an elastic backrest to recreate the act of leaning back to back; the other transmitted movement through the flexing of connected seats.
The final proposal uses a shared backrest, designed to transmit pressure and movement while also acting as a spatial boundary.
Reading this drawing
Leaning back to back: two people look in different directions while sensing one another’s movement or body warmth.
Reading this drawing
The mechanism transfers pressure from a person leaning back. Even without direct contact, transmitting this pressure can create an effect similar to leaning back to back. The lower diagrams show the idea in plan and section.
Reading this drawing
Two connected boards transmit the elastic response when someone sits down. Each person can sense the other’s movement through subtle changes in the shared structure.
Reading this drawing
Two flexible timber boards are connected so that the movement of one affects the other.
Operating Principle
The seat pivots in either direction around a fixed axis, allowing users to choose which way to sit. Tilting the seat allows an element in the form of a wall to be used as seating.
The backrest is proposed as an elastic membrane combining neoprene with a highly stretchable fabric. Deformation caused by pressure on one side is transmitted to the other, allowing users to sense one another's movement without visual contact.
Seat Detail
The seat detail comprises a pivot assembly incorporating bearings, brackets, lateral fixings, and a torsion spring. The floor fixing and its connection to the seat are shown separately to examine the relationship between moving and supporting components.
The structural and material arrangements were studied at the competition proposal stage.
Modular Assembly
An elastic backrest and seats are combined with a steel frame, with joints designed to allow disassembly and reconfiguration. The system expands into two-, four-, and six-person modules to accommodate different numbers of users and spatial conditions.
The orientation and combination of modules adjust the number of seats, passageways, and areas for staying, while forming a continuous spatial boundary.
Layout Proposals
For an airport, modules are arranged around a perimeter to distinguish inner and outer waiting areas; for the High Line, they are positioned along pedestrian flows. A small pavilion configuration was also explored by combining chairs and walls.
These layouts are application scenarios for different public spaces, rather than built installations.
Competition Submission
The proposal brings bodily support and the mediation of relationships between users together in a piece of public furniture. Pivoting seats, a shared backrest, and a modular frame develop a configuration in which seating is shared while personal areas remain distinct.