Architecture studio ZHA created the Echo Chair collection for Spanish design brand Nagami. These 3D-printed voluptuous chairs offer a sustainable yet elegant use of industrial waste, including single-use plastic items in hospitals. Advanced 3D printing gave the chairs their sinuous form, devoid of any screws or hardware. They appear as a single continuous system that defies conventional furniture design.
“A single geometric logic unfolding into multiple structural, spatial, and material expressions,” as ZHA describes its design. The manufacturing process combines computational design with large-scale additive manufacturing. Rather than assembling different parts, the chair comes out as a single continuous line fabricated via continuous-extrusion 3D printing.
The process gives the Echo Chair its geometry and structural integrity. Plastic fluid flows out of the printer to build the seat, base, and backrest simultaneously. One shapes the seat and base; the other, the backrest and structure. The result is a neat, ribbed texture on the chair that gives its surface a tactile handfeel.
“Generated from two continuous surfaces emerging from a shared structural edge, one surface of the ECHO Chair becomes an echo of the other.” The backrest curves downward gently toward the floor, while the seat arches upward and wraps around the user. The result is an artistic piece featuring gentle curves complemented by an expressive matching color palette.
Additionally, the Echo Chair collection features different expressions of the same geometry. It moves from translucent and reflective finishes to warm mineral tones and deep opaque black. The outcome is a continuous spectrum characterized by subtle tonal transitions inspired by natural landscapes.
Images courtesy of ZHA
