Utrecht armchair textile by Bertjan Pot for Cassina
Updated: Jan 26, 2020
Rethinking upholstery for a 1935 classic designed by Gerrit T. Rietveld is a tricky thing, especially since the creator of that classic is not amongst us anymore.
For Pot it was crucial to make upholstery that could not have been made at the time the original chair was created. Nowadays it is possible to weave jacquard patterns without a repeat. This technique seemed to be a good match with the wish to make a geometric pattern that is placed exactly within the seams and lines of the Utrecht chair.
Most patterns can be classified into two categories. One in which the pattern emphasizes the shape, like stripes or blocks and one in which the pattern dazzles the shape, like a camouflage print does or a large flower pattern. The Boxblocks pattern does both. It underlines the modernist blocky appearance of the chair but at the same time dazzles and looks beyond modernism.
The architecture of the armchair is reflected in the innovative manufacture of this BoxBlocks fabric, made from eight coloured threads, combined two at a time to create 19 colours designed to a template to follow the shape of the armchair.
