k Char with a star base by Harri Koskinen for Woodnotes

The k chair family is growing: the newcomer with a star base

The first version of Woodnotes’ k chair was launched in 2004. Designed by Harri Koskinen, the chair was a significant novelty for Woodnotes at that time, bringing a furniture dimension to the company’s product range. Now a new version of the chair sees the light of day. The star based k chair is a natural continuum to its two predecessors, combining their lightness, rotation and the pleasant rocking mechanism.

Harri Koskinen is a versatile professional and one of Finland’s most internationally renowned designers. Koskinen’s work can be seen in product ranges of for example Iittala, Issey Miyake, Genelec and Alessi. The Block lamp he designed for Design House Stockholm has been added to the collection of the New York Museum of Modern Art. Koskinen has a deep understanding of an extensive range of materials and he has the rare talent of achieving significant, uncomplicated harmony in his works.

“When Woodnotes almost twenty years ago asked me to design their new product, I hadn’t really designed furniture for serial production”, Koskinen recalls. Thus, the project was significant for both parties, as Woodnotes’ product range hadn’t included furniture. The new product was meant to enrich the range with its three-dimensionality, starting a new chapter in Woodnotes’ story. Koskinen began to work on an elegant, nest-like lounge furniture that would be highly comfortable to sit in. For Woodnotes, the choice of designer was clear from the very beginning. “Ritva is a highly positive visionary and she said that listen Harri, you know how to make a good product – there is nothing unclear about it”, says Koskinen. In 2004, the first version of the k chair was launched. At the time, nobody knew that a classic had been born.

The evolution of the k chair began from the tubular frame and continued on to the swivelling option. The most recent version with armrests was designed in 2015. The four star based k chair is a natural extension of the product family, bringing the features of both of its predecessors. It combines the lightness of the tubular framed chair with the rotability and the gentle rocking mechanism that comfortably follow the movement of the sitter. Upholstered with Woodnotes’ paper yarn fabric Sand, the relaxed, straightforward seat remains unchanged in the new version. The new version of the k chair had long matured in thoughts and discussions. When the product development project was finally launched, ideas and plans fell into place quite effortlessly – as if they were meant to be. “Ever since the first prototype, we’ve thought that this might be the best version of the k chair yet,” Koskinen says.