Body and Mind

Staff -- Interior Design, 10/31/2008 12:00:00 AM

 
The same digital age that launched a new era in global economics has wreaked havoc on human ergonomics, leaving many office workers fighting an uphill battle to maintain their waist lines and minds while tied to a computer nearly 24/7.

Since the late Bill Stumpf co-designed the Aeron chair with Don Chadwick in 1994, the concept of ergonomic seating has become an integral part of the workplace's design vernacular. In 2002, he and partner Jeff Weber began to explore the next iteration of interactive, work-friendly seating. The pair focused on the idea that a chair could support both body and mind by allowing the sitter to move more freely. More wiggle room means more oxygen, to the body and brain. The resulting Embody chair by Herman Millercreates support for the spine, pelvis, and thighs, giving the sitter an opportunity to breathe better by relieving pressure on these areas.

The chair's back instinctively adapts to the unique spinal curvature of each sitter and allows a greater range of motion (a.k.a., wiggle room) to improve blood flow and circulation. The tapered back allows for greater backward arm motion, opening the chest cavity to allow lungs to fill more fully with oxygen, which gets funneled to the brain. The “pixelated“ seat moves with the user, courtesy of a three-layer construction. Global springs support larger muscle movements while a second layer of local springs supports secondary motions and balances the body's larger movements, shifting the distribution of weight to rebalance it. A flexable polypropylene mat with cut-outs is made of individual hexagonal discs that support individual springs. It is layered to provide comfort and is topped with a textile to finish the seat. What does it all look like? Three base options are available: polished aluminum, graphite, and titanium. The frame comes in white or graphite, and the Balance textiles are offered in 13 colors: tomato, mango, papaya, white, black, carbon, khaki, iris, berry blue, blue-gray, blue moon, green apple, and chartreuse. That's what we call sitting pretty. 888-443-4357; hermanmiller.com. circle 424

2008 FALL MARKET TABLOID – SEATING

Don't miss our other 2008 Fall Market Tabloid seating features:

• Chairmen of the Board
  Five years in the making, the renovation of Rome's Palazzo della Esposizioni opened with proper aplomb last fall....+ Slideshow

• Clear Comfort
  Clearly fans of clarity, Santambrogio Milano designs furniture and architecture from glass...

• Laugh Lines
  United Kingdom–based Korean designer Baek-Ki Kim does not believe that one need sacrifice humor to achieve a sleek aesthetic...

• Seating
  See the newest in seating design, chosen by the editors of Interior Design.+ SlideshowSee the full 2008 Fall Market Tabloid.