AtMa Inc reforms broken J39 Mogensen chairs to demonstrate "importance of cherishing a single object"

Japanese studio AtMa Inc has created an unconventional seating collection by reassembling parts of Danish designer Børge Mogensen's revered J39 chair.

AtMa Inc named the collection J39.5 to reference the original chair, which Mogensen created for furniture brand Frederica in 1947 and has since become a design classic, appreciated for its simple, Shaker-style appearance.

The studio's founders, Makoto Suzuki and Ayumi Koyama, decided to create the collection after visiting a furniture warehouse in 2021, where they stumbled upon a J39 with a missing leg and cracked backrest.

Rather than attempting to restore the chair to its original state, which they say wouldn't have been cost-effective, the duo chose to create a new type of seat from the broken chair.

It took AtMa Inc a further four years to source enough J39s that were damaged beyond repair to make a total of 10 seats with the help of woodworking specialists.

"Through the process of reassembling parts, we came to appreciate just how robust the construction of these chairs is, and how the strength and precision of the materials allow them to be used without issue even after more than 50 years," said the studio.

"This reaffirmed for us the importance of reusing such materials."

The usable parts that could be yielded from each J39 varied widely – a fact that is reflected in the differing forms of the final pieces. One of the seats, for example, has a criss-cross base made from two sets of J39 legs, which were flipped upside down and fixed together.

There's also a chair composed of three adjoining backrests and another with a backrest attached to its side to serve as a small side table.

Chair parts that couldn't be salvaged were chipped, pulped, turned into paper and then twisted into cord, much like the one used to weave the seats of the original J39.

The cord was used throughout the making process of J39.5, and AtMa Inc is aiming to find more applications for the material in the future.

"We hope to collaborate with a variety of partners to further refine paper production and create 'paper with a story, made from furniture', which we believe will open up new possibilities," the studio explained.

"In today's world, overflowing with objects and facing various environmental issues, this project carries a message about the importance of cherishing a single object and engaging deeply with its materials."