Austria, 2015, laminated carbon fibre, epoxy resin, signed and dated: Thomas Feichtner 2015, height approx. 87 cm, width approx. 116 cm, depth approx. 78 cm. (DRAX)

A unique specimen, with certificate

Exhibited:
“Austrian Design Pioneer”, La Pelota, Fuorisalone, Salone Internazionale del Mobile, Milan 2015 – Galerie Klovicevi Dvori, designforum Wien, Zagreb 2015, “Designsalon Linz”, Landesgalerie Linz, 2015 – “Thomas Feichtner. Design Unplugged”, Bildraum Bodensee, Bregenz 2016

Lit.:
Christoph Thun-Hohenstein, Thomas Feichtner. Design Unplugged, MAK – Österreichisches Museum für angewandte Kunst/Gegenwartskunst, Vienna, Basel 2016, ill. pp. 20/21, p. 85, p. 151

The “Carbon Chair” is a consistently con-structive and yet experimental design by Thomas Feichtner. Carbon fibre fabric was draped to form the three concave legs, sloping triangular seat, and two-sided backrest. It is a single sheet of carbon fibre that contacts the floor at three points, describing a line from top to bottom, positively and negatively. To create the sheets of fabric, strands of carbon fibre have been woven in two directions into a flexible, cloth-like material. When coated with the resin and placed over a mould, the sheets harden to form a solid, lightweight structure, with a seat shaped to help the sitter slide into the back corner. The result is a formal interplay of inner and outer surfaces – a recurring theme that runs through many of Feichtner’s works.

“I wanted to find different angles, proportions, and lengths without repetition or symmetry. I wanted to create a chair that was only possible in this material.” (Thomas Feichtner)

“The example of Thomas Feichtner embodies the excellence of autonomous, individual design achievements in the age of digital modernism. Whenever the artist succeeds in applying his method to create outstanding designs (and he does so with wonderful regularity), he underscores the freedom of the applied arts to combine usability and artistic ambition in the best possible way. In this sense, Feichtner, a cosmopolitan, commits himself to the great tradition of Viennese modernism, developing it further in the age of digital modernism in a captivating variety.” (Christoph Thun-Hohenstein, Thomas Feichtner. Design Unplugged)