Friday, November 18, 2011

Rotational moulding and pop furniture

Rotational moulding is a technique which allows to mass-produce series of objects made of plastic materials.
Since the 50s this technology has entered in the design and furniture world.
The process consists in filling an hollow mould with polymeric powder, heating it and rotate the mould for twenty minutes at an average temperature of 250°C. In this way the polymer perfectly adheres to the mould internal surface and, once cooled down and consolidated, it will be possible to extract the object simply by opening the mould.

During the second half of 20th Century, several design furniture have been produced using this technique. We gathered some contemporary furniture pieces realized with rotational moulding technique with the purpose to show you its potential.

Proust baroque armchair designed by Alessandro Mendini is an "unfaithful reproduction" of his famous armchair with the same name created in 1978. In 10 years, more than 15 examples have been produced, both made of wood or with hand painted fabric; it was Mendini himself who decided not to "number" the armchairs, like all limited number pieces but simply "sign" them, like works of art.
After 30 years Proust armchair entered mass-production thanks to Magis, a famous Italian brand. The work of art becomes an industrial product in perfect "Pop" style, just like Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein wanted.



Another rotational moulding strong point is the ability to create big objects, just like Misses Flower Power large vase designed by Philippe Stark for Kartell. Stark's purpose is to approach design to general public by going beyond the concept of "elite". Rotational moulding was here applied for the first time with a polycarbonate material. It's a certain fact that the introduction of plastic materials in the furniture field has been (and still is) a great help for Stark and his "dream": quality furniture for everyone.


On Spun rotating armchair designed by Thomas Heaterwick for Magis the high qualities of polyethylene are clearly visible: high resistance and insulating features that make it suitable for outdoor furniture as well. Spun armchair has to support the weight of a person who, while seated on it, moves and rotates.




Babel bookcase with asymmetric shelves, designed by Mario Mazzer, looks like a tower, as the name says. The conical trunk-like shape and the irregular lines on the external surface reminds a tree bark.

Bright colours, often primary, are great matched with plastic materials and this bookcase, together with all the other objects present on this page are a fine example.
Since the 50s, when rotational moulding was first used for furniture and design objects, this technique and materials left their mark, increasing design potential and catchment area.