Herman Miller transforms gaming chairs into "art objects" with Faile

Furniture brand Herman Miller Gaming has collaborated with Brooklyn multimedia art studio Faile on 12 "interpretations" of the brand's Embody Gaming Chairs, which will be "inducted" into its archives after a New York exhibition.

The 12 chairs are part of a larger collection in the Faile and Deluxx Fluxx for Herman Miller Gaming collaboration, which also includes prints and collectible wooden sculptures that feature bright, graphic characters and designs.

The collection's pop-art and collage-style graphics were informed by Faile's Deluxx Fluxx art installation concept that was later adapted into nightclubs in Detroit and New York City. The spaces are covered in artwork and objects by Faile, including retro pinball machines and neon dance floors.

Lead by founders Patrick McNeil and Patrick Miller, Faile covered 12 Herman Miller Gaming chairs in the studio's distinct art style, which features characters such as animals, robots and pin-up style women on the chairs' seat cushions.

The studio also coloured the chair's frame and exposed structure on its back, rendering the parts in bright blues, yellows, greens, pinks and ombre shades.

McNeil and Miller treated the chairs as "art objects".

"With gaming culture, there's so much about colour and fantasy and the experience of these wild things coming to life. We felt that was not yet celebrated through the Embody Gaming Chair," said the pair.

"We saw this as an opportunity to bring that to life and showcase the chair not only as a design object but also as an art object."

The collection also encompasses 100, hand-carved wooden sculptures called Joysticks that are similar to tap handles Faile created for its Deluxx Fluxx spaces.

"The Joysticks came about based on the drawings that were always happening in the background in our work," said McNeil and Patrick Miller.

"While we are creating, these characters were always sort of in the sketches and doodles that filled up loose pages in the background."

Three prints that reflect "worlds of gaming and arcades" are also included in the collaboration.

The collection will be showcased at a New York exhibit in September and later, the chairs will be placed in the Herman Miller archives to "provide inspiration for future designers" according to the team.

Faile is Brooklyn-based multimedia studio founded in 1999 by Patrick McNeil and Patrick Miller. The studio's work includes print, installations, murals, tilework, event spaces and pop-up installations.

Herman Miller recently unveiled its first rebrand in over two decades earlier this year and also merged with fellow furniture brand Knoll in 2021.

The photography is courtesy of Herman Miller Gaming

The FAILE and Deluxx Fluxx for Herman Miller Gaming collaboration will be on view from 27 to 29 September 2024 at Herman Miller's Gansevoort showroom in New York City. Visit Dezeen Events Guide for a guide to the festival and other architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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