Legless Chairs that Use the Environment for Support

Melbourne-based designer Villo Hietanen builds chairs without legs. They source their support from the environment, using magnets, suction units or straps: I’m especially digging this folding model:Hietanen goes by the handle Nude Modular, and is a self-taught designer. “I studied industrial design in Year 11*,” Hietanen said in an interview with Union Magazine, but dropped out of school to ride BMX bikes. After a stint working in construction, Hietanen began experimenting with creating his own furniture. “I couldn’t stop thinking of ideas and wanting to turn them into something. I’ve got really bad ADHD, so it became a source of dopamine.”*(Year 11 in Australia is 11th grade in the U.S. Who knew ID was a high school option down under!)”With the magnetic version, I was curious how much force it would take. How many magnets would you need? Would it be easy to remove? I found that if you place the magnets vertically, there’s no horizontal interference. So, when you sit on it, it’s super stable, but with a bit of leverage, you can pop it off easily.” “What made it even more exciting was taking it out in the world. There’s something special about attaching this strange-looking chair to a tree or a metal post. It looks unexpected, and suddenly you’re using the environment as part of the object. When I sat on it, it felt like I was part of the tree or structure I was using. Any time I can take a design out into the world and make it interact with its surroundings, it adds another dimension for me. It becomes part of the environment.” You can see Hietanen’s ongoing projects here.