Cardboard Chair Making

From RISDpedia

A 3D class offered in Foundation Studies, taught by Ken Horii. The objective of the project is to gain understanding of the material (cardboard, utility knife) and to be able to turn something 2D into a 3D form. There are guidelines and limits to what students can do and cannot do (he may change his mind each year) but in general: The chair should be able to hold around 180 pounds at one point: Ken brings a bag of pebbles and sits on the chair to test comfort, sturdiness etc The maker of the chair will be sitting on their chair for the critique: 6 hours The chair should be able to be portable when collapsed: box fitting test (around 12 x 18x 24) Arm rests, back rest,a desk (min 8.5 x 11) required. Desk does not need to be attached to the chair. NO GLUE, NO TAPE It may sound scary and impossible but you make many little models and have a lot of discussions before you commit to your actual final. Learning and understanding about the corrugation of cardboard (the wiggly things in the middle) and the natural fiber of paper is important. Modularity (repeating) and rotations will help you build a better chair. There have been several people who made both chair and desk out of one single sheet of carboard without cutting, but only folding. Cutting breaks the strength of the cardboard so the less cuts you make, the stronger chair you will get. Favourite Quote from Ken Horii: "FOLD DON'T CUT"