Lot 46
  • 46

Tom Dixon b. 1959

Estimate
25,000 - 35,000 GBP
bidding is closed

Description

  • `CU29' Chair
  • inscribed `Dixon' and with fixed metal label stamped `Prototype'

  • 73 by 93 by 72cm.
  • 28¾ by 36½ by 28¼ in.
electroformed copper over polystyrene

Literature

Charlotte and Peter Fiell, Design Now!, Cologne, 2007, pp. 142-143, (for images of the polystyrene version of this model).

Condition

Catalogue illustration is a good colour match. Chair has a number of surface protrusions and imperfections (as shown right - facing - in catalogue illustration). These are part of the manufacturing process. Otherwise piece is as made.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

This chair was initiated as part of a project to test the extremes of value in the field of design product. In its original form as a monoblock  polystyrene shell it was first released as an installation in Trafalgar Square, London, in 2006 (see illustration) where the first batch of 500 were given away free during the London Design Festival. In 7 minutes the entire installation had been stripped away.  Ugly scenes developed between members of the public as demand exceeded supply.

In the meantime an edition of 8 of the chairs were being created through a process of electroforming.  The present chair, first sprayed with a conductive solution, was sunk into a tank  of copper sulphate (illustrated) where, over a period of several days, a skin of nanocrystalline copper several millimetres thick was grown to produce an extremely tough and textural surface. The present chair is the only example made in one piece, and unique in that it remains unpolished.

"Throughout my career I've always challenged the way furniture is made and distributed ... it doesn't seem to be a very modern or innovative industry in terms of process and business models ...  so giving away things for free was more a means of  challenging the archaic structures that exist in my trade ... the project was funded by tapping into the developing interest in rarity and uniqueness, where a technique that hitherto had only been used on jewellery, was transferred to a much larger scale to make a rare object, in a technically challenging environment.  It was very difficult to make these, and there were a lot of failures ... this was the first one that came out complete, so we were overjoyed ... in the near future I think that many of the objects that surround us will be grown rather than manufactured, and this chair is part of that development process." Tom Dixon