designed by Michael Young in 2009, manufactured by Michael Young Studio, Hong Kong, powder coated aluminium, plastic caps, height 88 cm, width 42 cm, depth 47 cm, height of seat 45 cm. (DR)

Exhibited in: Designfunktion, Vienna, 2009 One out of three prototypes used as preparatory models for the future series production in different makes. The second is at Michael Young’s studio and the third is with the manufacturer. Michael Young has designed “Chair-4a” as part of his extended “Works in China” collection, which will be launched globally in early 2010 in Japan and Europe. Created as part of Alexi Robinson’s interior for the hip restaurant group SML, the project was designed for local launch in Hong Kong earlier this year. The project explores new technologies and typologies made available only by working with highly skilled engineering facilities in Shenzhen, China. For Young the chair was developed through observation of Mac book industries. “I realised that if I could capture the engineering skills employed by local industry and put that depth of knowledge in aluminium research in furniture design using a similar mass-produced nature I could design a state-of-the-art and relevant chair. In recent years chairs have taken all nature of shape and form due to the use of plastics, but plastic in itself is not a pleasant material to use. Its tactility and its aging process are highly unpleasant. For the same price I can use recycled aluminium and in fact create a more sust chair that also creates rather than having a man pressing a button. The tooling is complex, but we created a chair that lasts a lifetime, engineered beyond plastic technology and far more sustainable”. (Michael Young)