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Frumpy Chairs: Hand-crafted Plastic-molded Seating by Jamie Wolfond

By Carly Ayres - January 3, 2013

Toronto born and raised, Jamie Wolfond is currently a senior at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island. We first profiled his Extraterrestrial Seating earlier this November and are excited to share his newest endeavor in seating design. A proponent of big messes, loud noises, and hard work, Wolfond epitomizes that in his latest project, which is no exception.

Frumpy Chairs are one-of-a-kind plastic seating, where the experimental process behind each piece results in a series of totally individual chairs, none alike. With Frumpy Chairs, Wolfond brings together the seemingly disparate worlds of 'hand-crafted' and 'plastic-molded' to create completely unique plastic chairs.

The chairs are made from plastic regrind, which are chunks of failed injection-molded parts that would otherwise go to waste. Sourcing the material from factories throughout the country, Wolfond was able to get over 350 pounds of regrind donated for the project.

The process behind the chairs is just as fascinating as the end result. Wolfond pours the bits of plastic regrind into a fire-proof silicone pattern and then staples it together by hand. Placing the entire mold into a pizza oven, he then heats it to the plastic's melting point, removes the mold and slumps it over a crude chair shape to create the final, and ultimately hollow, form.

"I sought to create an efficient production method that would produce a varied result," Wolfond said. "Rather than forcing the material into the form, I create a set of variables and controls that would let the chair make itself."

The process behind the chairs is documented via a short video found on Wolfond's website.

With plans to graduate this May, Wolfond hopes to work in a small studio environment, engaging in challenging but fun projects.

"I think furniture should be fun," he says.

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Frumpy Chairs: Hand-crafted Plastic-molded Seating by Jamie Wolfond

Ben

7 years ago

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This is a copy of Silo Studio's work which has been featured on Core77 before, so I'm surprised its featured. The chair even looks the same!

www.silostudio.net/

chair here:
http://paradise.rca.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SiloStudioDpLOWRES.jpg
!Report as spam

Carly Ayres

Carly Ayres is a partner at HAWRAF, a new design studio in New York. She used to pen "In the Details," Core77's weekly deep-dive into the making of a new product or project. Along the way, she's covered rugs with dinosaurs, shrink-wrapped buildings, kinetic military boots, and a myriad of other topics that can just barely be classified as industrial design. She attended the Rhode Island School of Design and lives in New York.