LISA HILLAND, CREATING FASHION AND FURNITURE

T H E T O R S O C H A I R. The Torso is part of the human form, the part that protects vital organs, the part that is depicted in statues and paintings across time and the part that is adored throughout humanity.

Designer Lisa Hilland, dreamt of creating furniture that combined both of her interests – fashion and design – in a self-evident manner. After a great deal of thought and a great deal of sketching and design iteration, she came up with the Torso Chair.

"I wanted to find out if I could design an item of furniture that combined my interests, that I could dress up in the way in which one dresses a torso". Fashion and furniture were both passions of Lisa's, and having to devote her self to one was a decision that didn't come easily. After years of toying with the idea, the result was the birth of the Torso chair. Lisa describes the chair as being dressed, with regards to the feeling it evokes within. It is redolent of fashion and the first version, with a woven leather back, gently flirts with the Swedish craft tradition. The chair is modest in expression yet it is visually striking with its woven leather detailing.

The fact that the chair is manufactured in Sweden is of large importance to Lisa, who prefers to work close to the manufacturer.

"Swedish firms are very bad at telling the world how skilled they are, the knowledge that they possess and the responsibility that they feel for the environment. People want to know where furniture comes from as well as how it has been manufactured. When one understands how a piece of furniture has been made one is also willing to pay for quality”.

And in this, one can truly understand the ethos behind Lisa's design process. Combining elements of woven leather, oak wood, and a chrome frame, the Torso effortlessly binds together natures materials. The woven leather feels as if it could be a bodice worn against the human torso; instead it represents the form of the chair.

As far as chair design goes; this one is pretty special.

We expect to see more unique designs emerge from both Lisa and the wider design community, as fashion and furniture continue to collide.