Relax sofa & ottoman WN real leather Not for sale (Matsuoka's first work) Serial???

The contrast between the walnut and the fabric is beautiful, making this a great accent piece for any room. We highly recommend it as a dedicated sofa for spending blissful moments!

*As this is an exhibition item, there may be color changes due to aging and minor scratches.
*Please note that we also sell these products in stores, so please forgive us if they are sold out.
*There may be slight individual differences in shape and size.
*Although we use thoroughly dried wood, due to it being natural wood, slight movement (such as small misalignments or warping at the joints) may occur.
*Please contact us if you would like to see the actual product.
*Please contact us if you would like delivery to Okinawa Prefecture or a remote island.

MUSE Design Awards 2024 Gold Award Winner (USA)

London International Creative Competition 2023 (USA)

If we were to describe design in simple terms, it would be "problem solving."

For example, when designing a chair, various issues must be overcome, such as comfort, strength, weight, dimensions, effort, sales volume and price.

However, when designing, it is not just about solving problems in an inorganic way.
I want to express something that will move people's emotions, and I feel that this is where the value lies.

And while wooden furniture designs are mostly created by our predecessors over the course of hundreds of years, there is still room for you to create your own original structures and phrases.
When you can find that space, the process of design becomes more than just problem-solving; it becomes free and expansive.

These can be found when you focus on the one thing that is truly important among the many issues.

This chair ignores all the issues related to productivity, such as effort and cost, and focuses solely on comfort.

The six distinctive spokes are designed to resemble hands and fingers gently embracing something precious, and by positioning them with a radius of 600 mm, they are designed to comfortably support the vertical lines of the head, shoulders, back, and waist.

And just like the six spokes, the arms and top rails all need to be hand-carved one by one from thick 50mm pieces of wood in order to create curves that fit the body.

The back cushion is made of 100% small feathers at a high density, providing a supple sitting experience, and the seat has a two-layer urethane structure that prevents it from sinking too much, reducing strain on the lower back.

There are countless other details that I paid particular attention to, such as the leather and fabric used for the cushions and the wood grain of each part, but it is precisely because of this that I was able to focus on comfort and freely proceed with the design, stretching it vertically and widening it horizontally, that I believe I was able to create a good chair.

oh yeah.
About 15 years ago, someone passionately told me, "Design is about making someone happy."
I've thought about it a lot, but these days I think that what I should be aiming for is simply that.

When I describe designing in a level-headed way, It would be "problem solving".

For instance, when I design a chair, I would have to solve many questions like comfort, strength, weight, measurements, labor time, volume and price.

But then, when I'm designing, it's not as though I'm doing it just for that. I want to express something that moves people's emotions, and I think that is where the real value lies.

Wood furniture has been made by predecessors for several hundred years, but there are still space to design my original structure and express something new. When I find that space, designing becomes free and expansive rather than problem solving. And I could only find that when I clearly see where the highest priority is.

For this chair, I brushed aside labor time, expenses, and everything regarding productivity, and focused solely on comfortability as a seating tool. The six signature spokes are interpreted from fingers and hands gently holding something precious, and setting those in R600, it is designed to support head, shoulders, back and waist in a vertical line. Spokes, arms and the headrest are all carved individually from wood material as thick as 50mm to fit the curve of the body.

For the back cushion, we used 100% high density feather for pliable support, and seats are made in two layers of urethane, to prevent back pain from sinking in.

Also, we were very particular about leather and fabric for the cushions, the grains of the wood, to name a few. Because I was able to design freely, expanding my thoughts in various ways, focusing just on comfortability, I am really proud of the outcome.

About 15 years ago, a mentor taught me passionately, that "designing is to make someone happy". I do lots of thinking about making furniture, but recently I think my goal is to simply follow that path.

SIZE chair W810 D930 H875 SH410
ottoman W600 D400 H500 SH410

MATERIAL: walnut

SEAT real leather

Designed by Shigeki Matsuoka