Colour on the streets

A look at some fun and functional pieces of street furniture

Lucky Beam and Supreme Beam by Katch I.D.

It is good to see that Scandinavia is not completely dominating the coloured outdoor furniture scene.

Lucky Beam is an outdoor bench designed by sisters Steph and Pamela Katch. They run an interior design studio, Katch I.D. in New York, founded in 2007, which works on luxurious projects so it may be surprising to some that they have come up with this witty and colourful solid piece of industrial inspired furniture. The sisters quote “We always obsess over materials, color, proportion, and the inevitable context.”

The inspiration for Lucky Beam came from travelling on the subway and seeing the massive loadbearing I-beams overhead. Made from aluminium powder-coated in a range of colours it has a reclaimed pine slab top. The long length beam is 48” long, 13” wide and 17” high. The shorter length beam is 23” long, 13” wide and 17” high. The Lucky Beam can be used as a seat or a low table.

The I-beam shape has also been translated into a tiny version of the Lucky Beam called The Supreme Beam. This is also made from powder coated aluminium with the end pieces mirror polished to make a glossy contrast to the solid colour. It is available in Day-glo Pink, Inky Blue, Chalk, Fire Truck Red, Carrot, Fresh Green or Chocolate and can be used as a paper-weight, book ends or purely a decorative piece.

The Orbit bench designed by Shane Schneck manufactured by Nola

Shane Schneck is an industrial designer, was born in the US and is now based in Stockholm. He trained as an architect which has led to his multi-disciplinary approach to design. He has produced designs for well-known brands such as Alessi, Kartell, Fritz Hansen, Flos and Muuto. The concept behind Orbit is that it is free-flowing form made to serve a practical purpose. It is made from sheet steel and then folded. The chair and two-seater bench are anchored into a cylindrical base which allows them to rotate 360 degrees – which must be fun. The set consists of a chair, bench and table. Nola, based in Stockholm, Sweden began on the principle of making comfortable, accessible designs which are today found in transportation hubs, public space and shopping centres. The Orbit chair, bench and table are suitable for pavement cafés, airports, parks and urban public spaces.

Share chairs by Thomas Bernstrand and manufactured by Nola

Thomas Bernstrand, based in Stockholm, Sweden, has a fundamentalist approach to design, disapproving of mannerisms and overtly designed objects. His products are made to be strong, useable and useful. He actually likes the fact that his products encourage disobedient behaviour, which is made even more interesting as many of his products are designed for public space. One misdemeanour that immediately springs to mind is the potential stealing of his Share chair having only parted with a small fee to detach it from its stablemates. His aim is that his products have charm, clarity and humour and honesty – and be personal.

The idea behind these chairs is identical to that of the supermarket trolley – that a coin will release the item for you to use and you get the coin back when you replace it. Made from powder coated steel with the frame in bent steel pipe and the seat in steel plate.