For centuries the chair has been the quintessential design challenge for creative minds the world over. How can I possibly do something new with this old form?—is a question that many designers have asked themselves over the ages, while trying to infuse their sitting-devices with style that is markedly their own. Fortunately for twenty-first century creators, there are many more materials and machining processes available than there once were, and a much broader palette of customer tastes to appease with them. These are certainly angles that designer and architect Alexander Gendell has intelligently channeled in the development of his new company Folditure, and in the profoundly innovative folding furniture that it produces.
While Folditure offers several items in its growing line of collapsible, hang-able furniture, the Leaf Chair is certainly a highlight, showcasing the innovativeness of the company in its very form, which is as distinct functionally as it is aesthetically. Folditure estimates that the Leaf might very well be the thinnest folding chair available, and measuring at less than three-quarters of an inch in its flat-folded form, that is probably an accurate assumption. The chair was designed to hang when not in use—so four of them hanging side-by-side vertically command only about four inches of closet real estate, saving plenty of room for your purple furs.
The industrial appearance of the Leaf might not be suitable for every household, but on the same token, the chair’s ruggedized aesthetic is not something to be fooled by in terms of its domestic versatility. The Leaf was designed with the dining room in mind and sports a full-length backrest and elevated sitting plane—ergonomic features that are a far-cry from those which you might find (and desire) in your typical patio or folding furniture.
The frame of the Leaf Chair is made from aluminum composite and is clad in a silver matte finish. The seat is fashioned from a durable and long-lasting outdoor-worthy mesh fabric. The manufacturer offers buyers with the option to leave the backrest exposed to maximize the industrial look of the chair, but there is also the option to have it suited in laminate to match other specimens in the Folditure furniture line (or the funky-fresh furnishings that already own the groove of your abode).
Whether or not the Leaf Chair tickles your inner interior decorator, it is certainly a thing to behold in more ways than one. As is the case with all of Folditure’s products, the Leaf Chair is made in Hoboken, New Jersey with all of the love and attention to detail needed to make a fabrication fanatic proud. It is bound together with stainless steel hinges and aircraft-grade stainless rivets, and it features “Pyramid Hinge” and locking technology, which allows multiple planar components to erect synchronously into rigid three-dimensional forms (Patent Pending). The Leaf is available online, direct from Folditure for $940 (add +$40 for optional laminate backrest covering). If you want to check-it-out in-person and you find yourself in New York City, you can see the Leaf Chair on display at the Brooklyn Museum on the fifth floor.
(All images via Alexander Gendell and Folditure)
