Unveiled today during Milan’s premiere design festival Salone del Mobile, giroflex 150 is an exclusive wooden office chair celebrating 150 years of Giroflex, exhibiting at the Assab One venue. A limited-edition of only 150 units, the chair is a three-way collaboration between Swiss design studio BIG-GAME, Japanese woodworking specialists Karimoku New Standard (KNS), and the Flokk design team.
This exciting collaboration enabled giroflex 150 to embody every aspect of the 150-year journey of the brand – a showcase of exquisite craftsmanship, an innovative approach, and high-performance human-centred design.
The launch of giroflex 150 coincides with the 150-anniversary exhibition of Giroflex, open to the public from the 7th-12th of June at Assab One in Milan.
Modern design, inspired by the past
When designing the chair, BIG-GAME took inspiration from the Giroflex archive, in particular the Holson series – an iconic set of designs from the 1950s by German industrial designer Arno Votteler. Every part of the Holson that is frequently touched by the user is emphasized using wood, delicately shaped for comfort. As well as this, they were heavily informed by their own experiences with historical giroflex chairs.
“Whenever we find a vintage Giroflex wooden chair in a second-hand shop, we’re amazed by how –comfortable it still is. We think this is a great lesson from the past on durability and quality. People would keep these chairs throughout their careers, all their lives.” – BIG-GAME
This emphasis on the heirloom quality of earlier Giroflex chairs has not only highlighted the wooden character of giroflex 150, but for it to age gracefully and acquire a patina that complements and celebrates our lives.
Read more about Giroflex 150 anniversary celebrations
Japanese craft with high-touch quality
What makes giroflex 150 so special is the exquisite quality of wood and woodworking that goes into the design. All wooden components are made from Japanese Oak (Quercusserrata & Quercus Mongolica), specially selected from slender young-growth trees that are felled as part of a responsible forest management scheme to promote biodiversity.
Japanese expert woodworkers Karimoku New Standard (KNS) then turn this fresh wood into beautifully crafted chair components that comprise giroflex 150. The final design is available in five different finishes - blue, green, grey, black and natural – transparent to allow the beautiful texture of the oak to shine through.
Human centred design
Despite its hard appearance, giroflex 150 is surprisingly snug, a testament to the high-touch quality of the wooden materials and the sophistication of engineering which allows the chair to dynamically respond to every movement of the user.
The crafted oak components are held in place by a flexible steel structure and synchro motion mechanism cleverly engineered by Giroflex to fit under the seat. Putting simplicity at the forefront, other than the gas lift to alter the height of the seat, BIG-GAME has designed the giroflex 150 without the adjustable features typical of modern office chairs. Instead, the properties of the materials and the sophistication of Giroflex’s engineering allow the chair to naturally adapt to the weight of the sitter, and to dynamically respond to their movements.
Preorder giroflex 150 limited edition chair
Giroflex 150 exhibition @ Salone del Mobile
Giroflex 150 is currently on show at the Giroflex 150 Anniversary exhibition, running all week long at the Assab One gallery in Milan. For more information about the exhibit, visit https://www.assab-one.org/en/
Giroflex 150 is limited to 150 units, with production beginning in August.
