At the time of the design of this chair, Apical Reform was in the process of exploring various avenues of design. As part of such an exploration we were using various articulation techniques to come up with aesthetically intriguing furniture pieces. A self-initiated project, the Betula Chair was made out of left-over birch ply pieces, due to its extensive use in parallel ongoing explorations. I conceptualized the design and spent some considerable time in the form refinement process of the first prototype. Further, during the execution stage, I was able to resolve the fabrication technique, complete with joineries and the assembly sequence.

The final outcome, a sinuous structure made entirely out of birch ply, is pleasing visually and should ideally be comforting, ergonomically. A reclining posture was set into a form, guided by a notion of layers and visual continuity of the lines, to conceive a monolithic structure with no visually separate aspects: all functions (hand-rest, back rest, legs, etc.) meld to form one uniform whole.

Initially, I was inspired by traditional Japanese carpentry; the lack of use of any material other than wood in the final product, the deft use of interlocking systems and the use of frictional resistance, were some of the aspects that I found quite fascinating. In the end I was able to avoid the use of nails. Only dowel pins and adhesive were used to hold the furniture together. However, the ergonomics of the chair needed some modifications at certain points. The back rest for example, was almost normal to the seat, which along with the crest-like design of the hand-rest, caused the elbow to have no support. The elbow would fall in the dip, resulting in an uncomfortable posture. The two solutions to this are, either a back rest that is inclined further (>8°), or the dip be pulled up with a shallower trough.

Apical Reform Design Team

Creative Inputs - Darshan Soni
Design and Engineering - Maharshi Bhattacharya
Photography - Anil Patel (Apical Reform)