I assisted on a project to incorporate two additions to an existing product in the Coalesse portfolio, the Massaud Lounge. The first was to introduce a privacy aspect by adding “wings” to the headrest with the design influence of Jean-Marie Massaud; the second was to refine the concept of adding audio technology to the product, which was first previewed at Neocon 2014, in collaboration with San Francisco Bay Area audio specialists, Bat&Cat.
Observation of the first prototype of the winged headrest gave guidance to its refinement. The updated shape introduced visual “posture” by adding horizontal and vertical lines in favor of the angled and ‘heavy’ former look. Besides aesthetics, this change also alleviated issues in the seating experience and how the wings interacted with the body.
<Old Shape New Shape>
When the audio inclusion into the product was previewed at Neocon 2014, the prototype was a one-way listening experience. When I joined the project, the new goal was to conceptualize and implement a two-way audio experience. Much of the behind the scenes work included scenario building on how this interaction with the chair may work and in what applications does including audio make the most sense in the office. With the expertise of Bat&Cat, two audio experiences were previewed in 2015.
The first audio experience was a collaborative application with one-way audio being localized in the headrest of the chair from the monitor which displayed shared content or a presentation. This application was first shown at Coalesse’s booth at Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy and then at Coalesse’s Chicago showroom at Neocon.
The second audio experience was a personal scenario; the headrest was equipped with speakers and a microphone. A visitor could use their own device to connect to the chair and make a call, experiencing localized sound for both listening and talking in the headrest.
2015