William Warren » Furniture

Weave Stool

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:33:35 +0000

Inspired by traditional woven topped seating, this stool is made from four identical plywood forms that weave together to form the seat and legs. The stools are veneered in natural ash or black ash.

The stools were launched at the British Design Embassy during the Milan Design Festival in April 2009.

Potala Bracket Range

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:25:45 +0000

A sand-cast aluminium bracket that enables DIY enthusiasts to make a range of furniture themselves. The bracket can produce beds, benches, tables, wardrobes and cupboards and can either be used as a short leg on its own or as a bracket to hold a longer wooden leg at an angle of five degrees.

The Potala Palace in Tibet was the chief residence of the Dalai Lama until he fled to India after the Chinese invasion in 1959. The palace is built with the walls angled at five degrees to help withstand earthquakes.

Silhouette Chair ‘Victoria’

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 18:33:02 +0000

The ‘Victoria’ chair is the wife of ‘Albert’, the Silhouette chair that I designed for Trico in 2001. Both chairs are developed from the shapes of traditional English chairs and made in laminated plywood. The result is an elegant shape, which is aware of the chairs that have gone before it.

Victoria was launched at a solo show in Tokyo called ‘Lovable, Alternative Folk Design, during their design week in December 2007.

Link to chair on Trico’s website

Look Back Mirror

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 18:26:38 +0000

This full-length wall mirror presents a modern exterior alongside a more traditional hidden form. What at first appears to be an undecorated square mirror frame reveals the ‘ghost’ of a traditional molded gilt frame when you look into the mirror.

The mirror was launched at a solo show in Tokyo called ‘Lovable, Alternative Folk Design, during their design week in December 2007.

Link to mirror on Trico’s website

Shelves for Life

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:20:13 +0000

These shelves are designed to last you a lifetime. The wood will colour, the surfaces will mark and stain and over the years and the furniture will become a part of you.

When you die, the shelves can be taken apart and reassembled as a coffin. The brass plate under the bottom shelf, that tells the story about this transformation, is then flipped over and you’re dates inscribed on it.

The shelves were first launched at the British Library during the 2005 London Design Festival.

Please email me if you would like the measurements and instructions to build your own shelves. You will need to include your height and build. I’d like to see your homemade versions please so email me the images if you’ve made any already.

Silhouette Chair ‘Albert’

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:29:44 +0000

In England, this is a common shape for a chair. An archetype. The shape has evolved rather than been designed. It originated from the qualities of the wood from which it is constructed and the processes available to make it in the past. It has been reproduced often because it is strong and comfortable.

My version of the chair is made in laminated plywood. This process works by gluing together thin sheets or ‘veneers’ of wood over a mould. A technique commonly used to produce seating, pioneered by Charles Eames in the 1940’s.

This chair is either the ‘wrong’ shape for the process or the ‘wrong’ process for the shape, but ultimately it is a chair that is aware of its heritage.

This chair was the first piece of furniture I developed for Trico. They launched it in a solo show in Tokyo in 2001.

Link to chair on Trico’s website

Your Umbrella Sleeps with the Fishes

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:24:22 +0000

An umbrella-stand made by casting concrete around Wellington boots. Is there actually any evidence of gangsters giving a victim concrete boots, or is it a universally known filmic myth?

The original prototype for this product is somewhere in the Thames, near Waterloo bridge. It was made in 2000.

Sleeping Rough

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:19:08 +0000

This is a design that explores both narrative and production methods. The bed was made in Birmingham by a company who would normally produce standard park benches. They were able to manufacture the bed using their existing tooling jigs, skills and material suppliers, for a fraction of the price of a hand built bed, made by other UK joinery firms. They were also able to include other lovely details such as the engraved text in the headboard and they explained the bed would be “vandal proof”.

There are associations of sleeping on a park bench that provide a narrative to fall asleep to.

The first sleeping rough bed was made in 2000.

No Parking Bench

William — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:00:26 +0000

An oak bench with upholstered leather top showing double yellow lines. This bench was designed as a hallway bench that might be temporarily perched on to do your shoes up or unload, but not meant to be parked on for a prolonged period.

Designed and constructed with Toby Hattchet. Commission 1998

Pub Sofa and Armchairs

William — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 18:28:23 +0000

The Pub Sofa and Armchairs carry the traditional within the modern. The simple modern cube sofa contains the memories of older sofa styles. The deep buttoned velvet sofa is at a slight angle to the exterior to reinforce the two at slightly at odds with each other.

The sofa and armchairs were launched at a solo show in Tokyo called ‘Lovable, Alternative Folk Design, during their design week in December 2007.

Link to sofa on Trico’s website

Link to armchair on Trico’s website

…