Studio Furniture — Ongoing Development
Research & Development, 2026
Sofa bench prototype, 1997
Rachel Hutchinson is revisiting an earlier body of studio furniture developed through research into structural seating and tailored construction.
The original work explored how flat sheet materials could be cut, joined and bent to produce curved forms that support the body directly, removing the need for conventional upholstery. Drawing on references from tailoring and corsetry, the work examined how structure itself could contour and support the spine. This body of work is now being re-examined through digital reconstruction and 3D modelling, allowing the original prototypes to be refined and developed further.
The Martinsell chair is currently being redeveloped as a solid oak piece, with adjustments to geometry and structural resolution. Alongside this, the sofa bench is being revisited using laminated constructional veneers. This introduces a new visual language of layered colour and repetition, extending the material approach seen across Hutchinson’s wider practice.
Together, these developments mark a return to studio furniture as an ongoing area of enquiry, sitting between sculpture and functional object.
