Modern Commercial Seating

Handkerchiefs – everyday life for those of us who go to school or work away from home would be much messier if we didn’t have those little pieces of cloth on our person. They’re small, but they aren’t insignificant. Just like the Handkerchief stacking chairs from Vignelli Designs. With their ergonomic features and funky appearance, they radiate an aura of gentle and soft appeal.

It would seem like these chairs have most if not all the necessary characteristics for contract café furniture. Let’s take a look at some of them:

• Stackable. An optional dolly would enable café staff to stack up to 24 chairs (without upholstery) at a time at a height of 85 inches. Without the dolly, 15-20 chairs can be stacked on the floor. Another option, a stacking bumper, allows the stacking of 15-20 upholstered chairs.

• Durable. The chair’s shell is made from compression-molded fiberglass-reinforced polyester with a urethane paint finish. The steel wire base is available in smooth powder coating or highly polished chrome finishes. The seat pad and upholstery are made from resilient polyurethane cushion and are attached to semi-rigid thermoformed support.

• Color variety. The colors in which the chair is available are probably the easiest for pairing with other pieces of furniture: grey, red, white, black, midnight (aren’t the last two the same?). The base finish comes in medium or dark metallic grey or polished chrome. Various kinds of seat pads, on the other hand, are available from KnollTextiles.

• Compact and lightweight. The armless chair measures 23 inches wide, 22.5 inches deep and 29 inches high, with a seat height of 18 inches. The specifications for the armchair are the same except for the width: 26 inches.

Designed by Massimo Vignelli and Lella Vignelli in 1985, the Handkerchief chair won the IBD Product Design Award and a Designer’s Choice Award in 1986. But I’m betting they probably used real handkerchiefs to wipe away tears of joy when they won, though.