First prize for Pepe Heykoop in Cologne

Awards / Product design

Pepe Heykoop won first prize at [d3] design contest in Cologne. His chair 'A Restless Chairacter' must be every teacher's worst nightmare.

By Jeanne Tan / 02-02-2009

A chair for restless souls.

Pepe Heykoop's chair 'A Restless Chairacter' must be every teacher's worst nightmare. Which student hasn't heard the familiar reprimanding in their school classrooms, 'Don't rock back on your chairs!' This chair encourages just that.

The chair by the recent Design Academy Eindhoven graduate was the winner of the [d3] contest for young designers which was organised by IMM Cologne. Out of 827 designs submitted, 31 projects were selected to form an exhibition at the recent IMM Cologne 2009.

The concept of the chair is based on wobbly old chairs. Whilst appearing like an archetypal wooden chair, the construction is in fact aluminium which is hidden under its flexible skin. The wobbliness is achieved through flexible joints made of rubber which also makes it more comfortable, taking away the stiffness of sitting in the traditional chair. While it may feel slightly unsettling to sit on the chair, the design is perfect for those people who just can't seem to sit still.