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Dan Svarth's Unusual Rocker-less Rocking Chair

"Playful experimentation combined with mathematical calculations"

By Rain Noe - November 23, 2021

in Furniture Design

Danish architect and furniture designer Dan Svarth designed this unusual rocking chair, which looks like a deck chair:

Here's how it rocks (sorry I couldn't find better video):

It comes with a little rack so you can hang it from a wall:

Svarth obviously used the skillsets of both of his professions to create the chair. As Danish manufacturer A. Petersen puts it,

"The Rocking Chair is the result of playful experimentation with cabinetmaking, combined with the architect's grasp of mathematical calculations of so-called force polygons: how the joints distribute the force you exert on the chair and its joints when you sit down. [Svarth] has precisely calculated how the joints should be placed in order to relieve and distribute the weight in the chair optimally."

Incredibly, retailer SuiteNY dates the chair to 2018—which means Svarth, who is nearly 80 years old, designed this in his late 70s! I think most furniture designers can only hope to retain that sense of playfulness that deep into one's career.

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Fraser Pyke

2 years ago

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I just did a quick CAD sketch to understand how it all moves. I think the tension of the canvas caused by you sitting in it will stop the chair collapsing backwards. Also the legs are spread wide enough that your center of gravity (ass) will remain inside them.
Yes you can probably fall out of it if you try hard enough but the same could be said about most chairs.
Honestly this looks like a heap of fun to sit in. Its probably even more fun to watch someone sit in it for the 1st time.
Hats off to Dan Svarth!

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Dave Cannon

2 years ago

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I see these neat looking things and think "I bet that would be comfy. I wonder how much it is?" I click on the link and it takes you to a page about price inquiries, where you have to ask for pricing. Is this more common in Europe or a High-End thing? Is it ultimately true that if you have to ask you can't afford it?

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Zach W

2 years ago

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so what prevents the chair from rocking too far back and/or forward?... Seems to be nothing actually holding the frame in place. Lean back and you'll drop to the ground it looks like...

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