I have trained and worked as a designer for theatre and film, but a passion for skis, sail boats and tennis rackets always paralleled my love for the stage.
At age eleven in 1967, I was spending my days at Expo 67, where architecture and design exploded in front of me. Otherwise it was tennis and racing sailboats on the St. Lawrence where I watched materials evolve from wood through fiberglass and graphite. At fourteen I was stringing tennis racquets in Toronto and my boss took me to the shop where they molded the racquets five at a time, in a large heated metal press. The first graphite, fiber and metal frames all went through my stringing machine.
Winters were cross-country ski races. Nothing compares to the relationship between a cross-country skier and his skis. Those skinny wooden racing skis remain a marvel of over a hundred years of design and craftsmanship.
Wood gives to weight like no other material. It's a living thing; proud to show its age. We tame it with saws, molds, and glue, but it still retains its character - something plastic will never have.
I remember when tennis great Rod Laver hated the metal racket of his sponsor so he spray-painted his Maxply wood racket to match the product he was paid to use.
I will admit in the age of petroleum and plastics, going to wood might seem to be going backwards, but for me, the craft of wood-working is the future, especially with our growing emphasis on the environment.
After five years of experimenting with the chair as sculpture, acquiring the craft of molding plywood has created unlimited possibilities. Informed by both yoga and chiropractic, I make active chairs that support the back and head and relax the body; as light and flexible as a pair of skis. And like skis they will suit the user's height and weight, and slide easily on any surface.
"Tobog" was inspired by the Toboggan and meant to be pulled around to face the sun, or look at the camp-fire. A functional object you can't help but love.
This was the ground plan. But a chair must be experienced.
I hope to have Tobog in your area soon. Just let me get my show on the road. See you at IDS 12 in Toronto Jan. 28 & Jan. 29th.
