Folly/Function 2018: RRRolling Stones

RRRolling Stones, conceived by HANNAH, is a moveable outdoor seating system made from 3D-printed concrete. The designers exploit the standard ergonomics of a functional chair to create durable, movable outdoor seating. RRRolling Stones’ playful design encourages creative interaction and emboldens park visitors to configure them in original arrangements based on preference and need: linear benches of various lengths; in small clusters; or as solitary seats dotting the landscape.

The RRRolling Stones seating was prototyped and printed at the Cornell Robotic Construction Laboratory in Ithaca, New York. Computer-aided manufacturing allows for possible mass customization of similar but subtly tweaked forms. Executed in layers of a special cement mixture reinforced with nylon fibers, the seats’ striated surfaces reveal their incremental manufacturing process. During printing, the seats’ interior is supported with a bed of gravel, enabling the creation of their cantilevered forms. A layer of gravel remains imprinted on each chair’s interior surface, giving it a geologic character.

HANNAH is an experimental design practice for speculative and built projects across scales, addressing subjects of architecture and urbanism. The office, led by Leslie Lok and Sasa Zivkovic, focuses on contemporary building practices and utilizes specialized novel material and fabrication methods.

The proposal was selected from a group of international submissions by a jury of leaders in the fields of architecture and design, comprising Allan Wexler, Artist; Chee Pearlman, Curator, Arts and Design, TED Conferences; Mark Yoes, Principal, WXY; Leon Ransmeier, Designer, Ransmeier, Inc.; Nick Koster, Project Manager, Snøhetta; and Jess Wilcox, Director of Exhibitions, Socrates Sculpture Park. The competition is directed by Jess Wilcox and Anne Rieselbach, Program Director, The Architectural League of New York.