Exhibition Catalog - Lawrence Technological University

Assistant Professor Jim Stevens with Lesa Rosmarek
Applied Digital Fabrication
By Graduate Student Ali Alwayel
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The design for a chair to be placed within the Affl eck House is based off of the linear geometry and
unique use of light found in the Usonian style of architecture. The direction of the design is heavily
rooted in the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Rehabilitation, in particular,
Standard 9 and the guidelines for the Design for Missing Historic Features. According to the standards,
replication of the existing chair is considered inappropriate, especially since the new chair
would be constructed using the CNC machine. In Lawrence Tech’s digital fabrication makeLab
the approach taken in the design of the new chair was to assume Frank Lloyd Wright had access
to a CNC machine and applied the Usonian principles of style and economy.
Surrendering to the principal of economy in terms of time and material, the team held to tight
constraints in depth, made possible by the technology of the CNC machine and the process of
laminating the wood in the vertical direction. The verticality of the chair fi ts within the language of
the vertical shaft of the house. Verticality of this nature is not usually seen in Usonian homes and,
therefore, should be celebrated within the Affl eck House. This chair emphasizes this unique opportunity
by subscribing to strong lines within the overall design of the chair and the orientation and
use of materials within the chair.
The chair is constructed out of 25 3/4inch laminations that are held together with glue and wood
dowels. This construction takes full advantage of the strength of the material in the vertical position.
The prototype chair is constructed out of plywood; the fi nal chair will be constructed out of
Plyboo Plywood.
This project was made possible by funding from the David Evans Memorial Grant and by a generous
donation by Smith & Fong of Plyboo Plywood.