Nendo Presents 50 Manga Chairs
Japanese design group nendo is as prolific as ever this Salone, presenting projects such as “50 Manga Chairs” for Friedman Benda gallery
Japanese design group nendo is as prolific as ever this year, presenting a number of projects throughout the Fuorisalone. Among the highlights is “50 Manga Chairs“, a collection of as many unique chairs inspired by the popular Japanese comics. While the graphic style itself “can be traced back to Ukiyoe prints developed during the Edo period (1603-1868 A.D.)”, the new pieces offer a decidedly contemporary take on the furniture typology.
Rendering the two-dimensional gestures, iconography, and symbolism in polished aluminum affords a kind of double abstraction: Read as a series of comic-book frames, the manga chairs collectively form an open-ended narrative. Beyond the function of seating, the chairs feature a mirrored finish that is intended to “reflect the real world, just like manga does”.
Presented by Friedman Benda gallery, “50 Manga Chairs” debuts this week at the Facoltà Teologica dell’Italia Settentrionale, adjacent to the Basilica Minore di San Simpliciano (Piazza Paolo VI, 6). The gallery will bring the exhibition to its NYC flagship space in September.
Articles you also might like
TLmag spoke with Humberto Campana ahead of his exhibition, “On the Road,” which opened at Friedman Benda on March 7th. This exhibition marks the first of a series of exhibitions and inaugurations recognizing the 40th year anniversary of Estudio Campana.
For the A/W 2022 issue, TLmag38: Origine/Origin, Philip Fimmano wrote about Assemblage 7: Lost and Found, a new collection of sculptural furniture by Faye Toogood, and a collection of hand painted clothing in collaboration with her sister Erica, presented last fall at Friedman Benda in Los Angeles.
After its inaugural exhibitions in June, mudac, the Museum for Contemporary Design and Applied Arts, will present its first major exhibition, A chair and you, which will take over the entirety of the museum’s new exhibition halls in the heart of Lausanne’s new arts district, plateforme 10.
Nendo and WonderGlass teamed up to create the Melt Collection, a series of glass furniture that is presented for the first time at imm Cologne 2019