Oct 27 2009
Thayer Coggin, an international leader in contemporary furniture, unveiled their new Claes chair designed by Clark Coggin during the October 2009 show of the International Home Furnishings market in High Point, North Carolina.
With a nod to typography, the Claes chair highlights the @ sign or asperand, as a central design feature.
"The asperand has become a part of our lives and is a unique part of our global, visual culture," said Coggin who works with typographical forms on a daily basis as a graphic designer.
"The @ symbol has evolved from modest usage in Renaissance mercantile descriptions to an omnipresent sign in our digital, 24/7 culture. With users, today, giving it numerous nicknames, from 'the curl' 'whorl,' 'rose,' to 'twiddle,' the asperand has clearly entered into our collective consciousness," said Coggin.
"I have always been an admirer of the pop artist Claes Oldenburg. With his sculptures of colossal buttons, gigantic clothes pins and over-sized typewriter erasers, Oldenburg magnified and monumentalized the objects of his time and place," said Coggin, designer.
"Oldenburg's work, to me, transformed these everyday objects into symbols of their time, but also into objects not of their time - a kind of relic from their own age for us to rediscover and explore. This sense of timeliness, timelessness and playfulness helped spark the initial designs for the Claes chair," stated Coggin.
"It's whimsical while maintaining the critical elements of our design and defined lines that have driven our brand," said Royale Wiggin, COO of Thayer Coggin.
Mr. Coggin is the son of Thayer Coggin, founder of Thayer Coggin, Inc.
He is vice president and creative director at Campaign Connections, a Raleigh based public relations firm.
Source: http://www.thayercoggin.com/