All about parametric furniture

Parametric furniture has amazing and perfect forms, as if it was made for science fiction films. Until recently, its creation would have been impossible. Parametricism emerged at the beginning of the 21st century as a direction in architecture and design, relying on the help of new computer programs. In our country, this term is applied to any form of computational design. Parametric furniture is represented by small architectural objects created by the method of three-dimensional modeling.

Furniture, as a scaled-down model of avant-garde urban architectural structures, suddenly began to gain popularity, but mainly with foreign consumers. It is used to decorate gardens and parks, to create modern interior design.

Today, the creation of parametric furniture from plywood and other wood materials is associated with ecodesign. For this direction, saving a natural resource is important, and models using computational design can be collected practically from plywood production waste. They also meet other requirements of ecological design: they are natural, laconic, light, they use the simplest materials to create them, and they look great at the same time.

Such furniture is created from many figured cut plywood elements, fastened together using steel threads or strong thin rods. As a result, the product becomes like a puff cake. Such models belong to the avant-garde movement, they resemble art objects with irregular, smoothly flowing geometric shapes. Each piece of furniture has its own exclusive look, which can remotely resemble animals or be completely abstract.

Modern computer technologies make it possible to calculate and see the future art object on the monitor surrounded by the interior, into which its further integration is planned.

Parametric furniture has a wide range of applications:

• streets, gardens and parks;
• offices, playgrounds;
• private houses and apartments;
• restaurants, shopping centers;
• clubs and concert halls.

The unusual beauty of art objects fascinates and attracts. But they also have negative sides:

• not every interior is capable of accepting avant-garde furniture;
• to create it, CNC machines are required, which means that the work cannot be done privately;
• the cost of each model is quite high.

To create parametric furniture, designers use various types of materials: wood, MDF, laminated chipboard, metal, plexiglass, plastic, leather. But the most popular option is invariably plywood. It is lightweight, environmentally friendly and natural. It is made from birch, pine, fir and many other types of trees.

See what looks can be created with simple and unobtrusive material.

• Laminated particle board does not differ in particular strength, light structures are made of it. For unusual models, finely dispersed fraction (MDF) slabs are more often used.

• Fabulously beautiful furniture can turn out from solid wood or partially processed logs... It combines unusual geometric shapes with the warm natural energy of wood.

• Wood is in perfect harmony with other materials. Sets of wooden plates combined with leather furniture look irresistible.

• Continuing the theme of leather furniture in a parametric style, we suggest evaluating presentable office chairs on a wooden base and a soft cozy chaise longue made from an abundance of leather cushions.

• Avant-garde sculptural furniture made of artificial stone based on acrylic and polyester resins looks fantastic.

• Designers often choose to create their amazing parametric objects metalusing it in the form of rods, wire or even coins.

• For the arrangement of light airy interiors with soft wavy bends, it is used plexiglass... Sometimes a metal or plastic base is used, which works well with transparent surfaces.

There are a number of computer programs with the help of which the computational design of furniture takes place. Designers virtually build the future structure, calculating its dimensions and deciding on the appearance.

The entire workflow can be divided into four stages.

• First of all, a design project is created, in which the volumes of the future structure and its location in space are estimated. The surrounding perspective and harmonious integration of the model into the existing interior or into the park (garden) area are considered. With the help of a special program, a three-dimensional design is created not only for the product, but also for the surrounding objects, which makes it possible for the designer to accurately correct the dimensions and lines of future furniture. If the model is complex, its mock-up is preliminarily made on a multi-scale reduced scale.
• At the second stage, designers create drawings and diagrams, calculate everything to the smallest detail: the upcoming load, the drawing of the elements and their number, the thickness and dimensions of the plywood, the location of each workpiece. The composition of fasteners, their number and place of fixation in the structure are also taken into account. Painting materials are calculated. With the help of computer technology, fast and accurate work on a design project takes place.
• At the third stage, work is going on directly on the manufacture of parts. With the help of special technologies, information is transmitted to workshop CNC machines, which are reprogrammed for cutting blanks of future furniture. The elements are cut according to a given scheme, which are immediately polished and treated with protective impregnations. Layers of varnish are applied to each detail. If the furniture is intended for placement in a building, two or three layers of protection are enough; for outdoor use, this number is doubled. The prepared parts are grouped (according to digital markings) for the upcoming assembly of the structure.
• At the last stage, the structure is assembled to check its reliability, convenience and quality. Studs, rods, knitting needles and other fasteners must be strong and located in the places indicated in the drawings. Each detail must take a strictly allotted place. To assemble a model, you may need from 5 to 50 fasteners. If the product passes the test, it is disassembled again for transport. Final assembly takes place at a permanent destination.

The software significantly speeds up and facilitates the design of furniture, reduces the time for working on drawings, estimates and preparation of accounting documentation. For graphic modeling and independent calculations, you can use any of the many programs, for example, the following:

• "BAZIS-Mebelshchik";
• "Bulk - a furniture company";
• Pro100 - simple and straightforward;
• WOODY furniture design software;
• "Astra Furniture Designer";
• KitchenDraw is a program designed for designing kitchen furniture.

The flight of the designers' imagination, the smoothness of the lines and the accuracy of computer graphics make the furniture unusually beautiful and mysterious. Looking at these masterpieces, it never occurs to anyone that most of them are made of ordinary budget plywood.

• The bench connected to the table is designed for a large veranda with panoramic windows. The natural material of construction is in perfect harmony with the forest landscape behind the glass.

• A sofa made of wood with leather inserts created for a restaurant.

• A beautiful colored art object made from the remains of a furniture production.

• An unusual parametric chair that looks like a strange insect with a huge antennae.

• A set of avant-garde furniture brings coziness to the austere urban interior.

• The working area is equipped with a spectacular table and the same unusual hidden shelves.

• Amazing coffee tables created by intersecting details.

For information on how the manufacture and assembly of a parametric chair takes place, see the next video.