Shin Azumi designed the Nara series in 2009. His starting point was to analyse the body’s seated position in Danish chairs by Mogensen, Wegner, Jacobsen and Ditzel, and from there he applied a systematic and graphical aesthetic. Behind the stringent, simple design a more complex logic can be discovered. When you sit in a chair, your spine is normally forced to subject itself to the shape of the chair. Yet this is not the case with Nara. While developing the design Azumi discovered that the shape of the chair could support the muscles and ligaments around the spine, and thereby ensure a stable and natural sitting position without undue pressure on the spinal cord.
Shin Azumi was born in Kobe, Japan in 1965. After finishing his MA at the Royal College of Art (UK), he worked as a design unit ‘AZUMI’ for ten years. In 2005, he established his own design office ‘a studio’ in London. His activity covers product, furniture and space design and works with international clients. His works won numerous international design awards and his works were acquired by museums in many countries. He is currently a visiting professor of Osaka University of arts, Japan.