YEAR: 2016
CATEGORY: Critical Design, Design Research, Furniture Design
ROLE: Concept, Design Research, Theory, Model Making
CLIENT / TYPE: Bachelor Thesis, Anhalt University of Applied Sciences, Dessau
TOOLS / MEDIUM: Analogue and digital research, consumer observation, writing, book design, bookbinding, furniture concepts, 1:3 models, photography
OUTPUT: Bachelor thesis, self-bound book, three furniture concepts, prototypes, presentation, photographic documentation

More Stuff?!

Neurotic Furniture: A Path to Self-Awareness

Challenge
More Stuff?! examines personal consumption through the objects closest to us: the furniture in our homes. The project asks how much we own, why we keep so much, and whether furniture can make this excess visible instead of simply hiding it. The challenge was not only to develop a theoretical and practical bachelor thesis, but also to turn the topic back onto myself. Counting and questioning my own belongings became an important part of the work.

Approach
The project proposes a series of “neurotic furniture” objects. Each piece reacts to overload, excess or careless use. Instead of being stable, silent storage systems, the objects become critical companions that confront their owners with the amount of things they possess. The work combines research on consumption, design history and everyday behaviour with speculative furniture concepts.

Process
The thesis began with theoretical research, observations in supermarkets and other spaces of consumption, and a closer look at my own possessions. This research was then translated into a design task: to create furniture that makes excess physically noticeable. Three furniture concepts were developed, built as 1:3 models and documented photographically. The written thesis was designed and bound as a book, accompanied by a final bachelor presentation.

Result
The result is a bachelor thesis consisting of a book and three critical furniture concepts. Together, the objects turn everyday furniture into a system of feedback, resistance and self-awareness.

Reflection
More Stuff?! was one of the first projects in which I understood more clearly where my path as a designer and design researcher could lead. It connected theory, observation, making and personal reflection in a way that still feels relevant to my work today. The project also had a lasting effect on my own habits. The act of questioning every object — whether I need it, use it or only carry it with me — became a practice I still follow. In that sense, the thesis was not only a design project, but also a personal exercise in awareness and reduction.

Too much to handle!

Nowhere is personal consumption and excess more apparent than in the wardrobe. Here too, many closets already strain under the weight—bent clothing rods are a common sight. To distill our overwhelming abundance of garments into a manageable selection of favorite pieces, this unconventional clothing rack arrives at just the right moment.

Minimalist and unambiguous in design, it invites the user to hang items upon it. With a sleek, smooth surface, it accepts nothing but coat hangers. Yet again, gravity plays a decisive role in its function. A barrier mechanism, restrained by magnets, causes the rack to effectively determine—at least to some extent—for its owner when enough is enough.

Once the load exceeds the structural capacity of the two-part rod, the mechanism is triggered: the rack autonomously releases the excess weight, relieving itself of the owner's burden.

The burden of excess.

When this chest of drawers is loaded in accordance with its intended use—namely, with typical household items—the "intended flaw" in its design quickly becomes apparent. Gradually, it reveals that the furniture is not entirely capable of bearing the weight imposed upon it. The structure begins to yield under the strain, to the extent that its internal components visibly shift outward. In extreme cases, one of its legs may lose stability and collapse.

While the owner may not yet be aware of the excessiveness of their possessions, this piece of furniture soon prompts a realization: Do I truly need all of this?

The collapsible textile bellows structure becomes visible solely due to the force of gravity. To prevent the bellows from being exposed when the cabinet is empty, a tension spring maintains the two main sections under stress. Within each section, cutouts are incorporated to serve as supports for items such as books, vases, or similar objects. Consequently, aesthetically or functionally important items remain unaffected by the collapsing effect.

A balancing act.

This drawer presents itself with a rather lightweight and agile character. Indecisive and imprecise, the piece shifts its “head” from side to side under load. When closed and unburdened, it appears solid and stable. However, if one dares to use this side table as one would a conventional counterpart, it—and likely its user—quickly loses composure, or perhaps never even attempts to maintain it.

As its name suggests, the “Wendehals” (lit. “turnneck”) features a highly flexible neck joint, which renders the tabletop anything but load-bearing. Any weight placed on it that is not evenly distributed or centered is summarily rejected—the surface simply tilts and discards the burden.

Attempts at conventional use may even be “rewarded” with the expulsion of the drawer’s contents. Due to a letterbox-like mechanism, the drawer, when tilted at the appropriate angle, releases its contents abruptly, which then spill unceremoniously at the feet of the unsuspecting user.