GB Lounge chair
GB Lounge chair
Dutch industrial designer Gijs Bakker had already established a reputation for his aluminum jewelry when he decided to turn his attention to designing a chair. Inspired by a competition held by Dunlop, the rubber foam manufacturer, Bakker took a piece of foam, bent it at a 90 degree angle, and fixed it in a metal frame. The result was the GB Lounge, a modular lounge chair whose simple silhouette is enhanced by invitingly overstuffed upholstery.
Originally coined “the Levi’s Chair,” Bakker was determined that his design – much like a pair of well-loved jeans – would act as an easygoing antidote to the previous generation’s stiffer tastes. Today, its functionality has been enhanced further with the addition of feet that raise it slightly from the floor for added comfort. Available as a one-seater chair, or with the addition of a pouf, the GB Lounge can be arranged in a variety of ways by connectors that transform it from a solo chair into a multiple seating system.
Dutch industrial designer Gijs Bakker had already established a reputation for his aluminum jewelry when he decided to turn his attention to designing a chair. Inspired by a competition held by Dunlop, the rubber foam manufacturer, Bakker took a piece of foam, bent it at a 90 degree angle, and fixed it in a metal frame. The result was the GB Lounge, a modular lounge chair whose simple silhouette is enhanced by invitingly overstuffed upholstery. Originally coined “the Levi’s Chair,” Bakker was determined that his design – much like a pair of well-loved jeans – would act as an easygoing antidote to the previous generation’s stiffer tastes. Today, its functionality has been enhanced further with the addition of feet that raise it slightly from the floor for added comfort. Available as a one-seater chair, or with the addition of a pouf, the GB Lounge can be arranged in a variety of ways by connectors that transform it from a solo chair into a multiple seating system.
Comfortable and casual
Originally coined "the Levi's Chair," Bakker was determined that his design - much like a pair of well-loved jeans - would act as an easygoing antidote to the previous generation's stiffer tastes. Today, its functionality has been enhanced further with the addition of feet that raise it slightly from the floor for added comfort.
Originally coined "the Levi's Chair," Bakker was determined that his design - much like a pair of well-loved jeans - would act as an easygoing antidote to the previous generation's stiffer tastes. Today, its functionality has been enhanced further with the addition of feet that raise it slightly from the floor for added comfort.
"Today I look to a very sophisticated version but it keeps the freshness, direct height and easy-going idea of the original."
The power of good design is especially evident when the object exists outside its original context, transcending the specific circumstances in which it was conceived and having a universal relevance. Gijs Bakker designed his GB Lounge Chair in 1972, in the wake of the sixties when radical young designers like himself were rethinking interiors, furniture and ways of living. “We were the youth of the future,” he says.
Bend it like Bakker
The power of good design is especially evident when the object exists outside its original context, transcending the specific circumstances in which it was conceived and having a universal relevance. Gijs Bakker designed his GB Lounge Chair in 1972, in the wake of the sixties when radical young designers like himself were rethinking interiors, furniture and ways of living. “We were the youth of the future,” he says.
Product Material
Frame in steel with powder coat, HR/CMHR/Cal.117 foam, upholstery in Cassina textile, plastic feet
Other products in the
GB Lounge family
Gijs Bakker (1942) is a multidisciplinary Dutch designer, lecturer and one of the original founders of Droog design. Through a philosophy of “conceptual design in context”, his studio in Amsterdam follows a holistic design approach in which heart, mind and substance come together. Gijs Bakker and his studio has conceived numerous design icons, and Bakker’s work is represented in museums and private collections all over the world. As a teacher and lecturer he urges students, artists and designers to find their individuality as designers. Something he himself has managed to do very well.
DESIGNED BY
Gijs Bakker
Gijs Bakker (1942) is a multidisciplinary Dutch designer, lecturer and one of the original founders of Droog design. Through a philosophy of “conceptual design in context”, his studio in Amsterdam follows a holistic design approach in which heart, mind and substance come together. Gijs Bakker and his studio has conceived numerous design icons, and Bakker’s work is represented in museums and private collections all over the world. As a teacher and lecturer he urges students, artists and designers to find their individuality as designers. Something he himself has managed to do very well.