22 Bespoke furniture design

Observation

Bespoke furniture design is made for a particular customer, client or in the case of Galada reserve, a particular site and will commonly lead to custom made work as individually designed objects. While it is hard to determine the nature of a piece (without visiting site), from the virtual tour most pieces within Galada appear to be proprietary landscape furniture (refer to 24).

Design theory

Bespoke furniture design results in individual and commonly one off pieces of high quality craftsmanship which increases its longevity and may contribute to the overall visual language and identity of the design and space, and as such will commonly result in a high price tag. Due to the price of such items, bespoke items have seen a reduction in purchase due to cheaper alternatives (such as Ikea for furnishing homes) and are reserved for higher end budgets (or individuals with more disposable income), as they move away from being a purely functionalist piece and into a piece of art. Obviously furniture design is primality an indoor craft (and is a very saturated market), with companies such as MPJ studio and P4 producing bespoke high quality products. The market in outdoor furniture design is less competitive, with larger companies leading the way. Often the complication of wear due to environmental conditions (sun, rain) has lead to much outdoor bespoke design being made of durable materials (for length of life) such as concrete, stainless steel and some timbers. Two companies in this market include Australian owned Cox urban furniture which boasts an impressive selection of proprietary products with the option for customisation and global company Vestre . You may find a further list of companies within this market here.

Do you think paying a higher price tag for bespoke (custom made) over proprietary (standardised) furniture or objects is worth it? Why/why not?

Precedents

Of course there are examples where furniture design has been custom made for a specific site, although it is rare, it often leads to very successful projects. One project that jumps to mind is Microcostas, by Guallart Architects.

Microcostas, Guallart Architects

While not exclusively furniture, the typology of a pavilion often integrates furniture; seating and tables within the architecture.

Josef Strauss Park by DnD kandschaftsplanung is one example where client expectations, functional requirements (shade for seating) and aesthetic integrity and intertwined to achieve a site specific design.

Josef Strauss Park, DnD Landschaftsplanung

Other: There are two ongoing competition's which produce site-specific pavilions, and may be complimentary as a form of inspiration for future projects. These are mpavilion located in Melbourne and Serpentine Pavillions.

2017 MPavilion Designed by OMA's Rem Koolhaas & David Gianotten Opens in Melbourne