Swedish studio Atelier Alba has created a compact sofa for Fogia with a chunky wooden frame based on the furniture traditionally found in Swedish family kitchens.
The Stockholm-based architecture and design practice originally designed a version of the Block sofa to provide a comfortable breakout space within its small office.
The design was informed by the simple wooden sofas typically used to provide seating, as well as storage, in homes where space is at a premium.
"It's common in Sweden to have a kitchen sofa," said Atelier Alba co-founder, Sofia Nyman. "Block takes a few of its design cues from this sort of sofa."
"You feel as if you've seen it before," she added. "It's not like we've made this completely new thing. We wanted it to be familiar and friendly, to pull on a nice memory from the past."
A friend who visited the studio suggested they present the design to Fogia, with whom Atelier Alba had an existing relationship having specified its products for previous projects.
Fogia focuses on developing furniture for homes, offices, restaurants and hotels that challenges traditional perceptions of Swedish design through an unorthodox approach to form and materials.
For this reason, the brand was instantly attracted to the Block sofa's unique style and strong narrative.
Apart from some minor adjustments to the cushions, the sofa's overall proportions and materials remain exactly as they were in the original design.
The solid wooden frame encourages an upright seating posture that is comfortable but also active, rather than the slouchy designs favoured for lounge environments.
Atelier Alba likes to work with wood as they feel it is part of their Scandinavian heritage. The sofa's frame is made from solid oak that displays the natural grain and can be treated with various finishes.
"We love wood and wanted to design a sofa that expressed this love," the studio told Dezeen. "It was designed to be generic and archetypal, but still specific with its chunky proportions."
The straight lines of the wooden frame are deliberately contrasted with the rounded profile of the cushions, which can be upholstered in fabric or leather.
"It offers a sense of something familiar," the designers added, "but the character is there in the relationship between the strict geometry and the rounded upholstery."
The choice of materials and simple shape, combined with carefully designed joinery, is intended to ensure that the sofa is equally attractive when viewed from any direction.
Atelier Alba suggested it could be used on its own or in modular arrangements in contexts including restaurants, lobbies, waiting areas, offices, kitchens and hallways.
Other design brands creating furniture for Fogia include Note Design Studio, which unveiled its Figurine collection in 2017 at Stockholm Design Week.
The collection was intentionally designed to not be eye-catching, and therefore does away with any additional details or adornments.
The post Atelier Alba's Block sofa contrasts geometric wooden frame with rounded cushions appeared first on Dezeen.
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