Eliyahu's chair - Dalia, KETER
A new design on an iconic product. Dalia was one of the first products of KETER plastic.
My goal was to produce an extension for the Dalia chair, a prosthesis for an existing design. The lengthened legs transform a widely recognizable design into a brit milah* chair, playing with the original design motif to invest the piece with a new function. The demolding angle and details of the leg's shape integrate the extension as a natural addition.
When we started the design process, we did not have an existing 3D model. It was a complex design to reproduce: the model is not symmetrical and there is deformation from the plastic injection process. It appears the model was handmade by a model maker.
Everything started with this picture, and the appreciation of the feeling of simplicity present in this moment. The mohel has stacked four Dalia chairs to make an Eliyahu chair** for the circumcision. We can see that the scene is taking place inside a synagogue, but curiously they don't seem to have the ceremonial chair that is usually found. Although we are commanded to beautify ritual objects, the solemnity of a moment like brit milah doesn't come from the object itself. The power comes from the ritual, elevating objects to spiritual functions. At the time that you define the function you need (an Eliyahu chair, in this case), it is what it is. The creation process, then, is a product of speech and intention. From this, I could imagine the ideal prosthesis for the Dalia chair.
Personal project
Photographer and Collaborator: Idan Angel
Year: 2020
This series of photographs documents life in the time of Coronavirus. As we started holding religious rituals outside in public gardens, plastic chairs served to reproduce the interior layout of a shul, respecting while also subverting the solemnity of the traditional synagogue. The assembly of chairs also represents keeping the commandment to pray together while breaking the rule against public gathering. Representing both transgression of rules and adherence to Laws, these scenes illustrate this bitter tension in which we lived for two years.
*"Brit Milah is the ceremony during which a circumcision is performed on Jewish baby boys when they are 8 days old. This ceremony is important for many Jewish people as it is a symbol of the covenant that God made with Abraham. Watch as this family shares why they think the ceremony of Brit Milah is important."
(Source: Jewish Museum, London)
**"According to Jewish tradition, the Prophet Eliyahu is present at every circumcision, protecting the baby boy. And so “Eliyahu’s Chair” is the name given to the seat of the godfather who holds the infant during this ceremony."
(Source: Israel Museum, Jerusalem)