THE CONCEPT FOR DULA FATSHE CHAIR DESIGN
“TLO DULE FATSHE” IN SOTHO IS AN INVITATION TO COME SIT DOWN. THIS CHAIR IS DESIGNED FOR PEOPLE, TO COME
TOGETHER, AT WORK.
It is a chair designed to be inviting and colourful (not monotone), to create a relaxed environment that inspires creativity. Too many boardrooms are furnished to be formal and austere. This chair is a revolt against the rigid.
It is proportioned to be comfortable and flexible – to give the user freedom of movement. This is achieved with with a generous sized seat and backrest that can swivel and tilt. It includes casters for mobility and a gas lift for height adjustability to suit different users.
The Sotho influence – which is apparent in the name and the woven pattern – is from the area where this chair is made in rural Eastern Free-State and where I grew up. My father had a weaving factory when I was young. I would get invited to sit down (“dula fatshe”) with the Sesotho ladies and weave my own basket alongside them. There was always happy, comfortable chatter around the work bench and a sense of community. The inter-linking squares and shapes of the weave pattern symbolises the coming together of people at work.
