Meda: Physix for Vitra

Designed by Alberto Meda for Vitra, a new office chair explores the possibilities of dynamic sitting, combining a flexible plastic frame, elastic knitted fabric and an integrated synchronizing mechanism.

On the occasion of the 2012 Orgatec office fair, Italian designer and engineer Alberto Meda presented his most recent design for German furniture manufacturer Vitra. The Physix chair is based on the idea of creating a continuous textile seat and back, held between two parallel profiles.

Using state of the art materials and production methods, the chair seeks to create a new, dynamic sitting experience: a flexible frame construction, an elastic knitted fabric cover and a stabilizing mechanical unit. The chair's frame takes advantage of modern plastics to achieve flexibility and stability. The polyamide side profiles work as a flexible hinge, and the flat armrests of the chair can be deformed in a similar manner. A single stretch of highly stable fabric forms the supportive continuum of seat and back, while the chair's frame and seat follow the sitter's movement smoothly in all directions.

A pair of visually expressive aluminium brackets attached to the back of the chair transfer the movement of the frame to a spring mechanism, allowing the seat to always follows the sitter back to his upright position. With its combination of a flexible plastic frame, an elastic knitted fabric and an integrated synchronized mechanism, Physix allows for an interplay of flexible and rigid elements, and proposes new possibilities for what Vitra deems "dynamic sitting".
Alberto Meda, <em>Physix</em> chair  for Vitra
Alberto Meda, Physix chair for Vitra
Alberto Meda, <em>Physix</em> chair  for Vitra
Alberto Meda, Physix chair for Vitra

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