Danang Vertical Studio
Portraying Rest in Vietnam
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fter observing how people in Vietnam work, rest and play, we noticed something unique about the way they rest. In Vietnam, the space people get to use for resting is not a lot as the pathways and shops are small and narrow. So people have to squezze themselves into the space that is given to them and manage it on their own, be it for sitting or sleeping. With this selectivitly small amount of space, Vietnamese manage to space out themselves and creating a boundary around them. So the way they tend to rest is different from how normally people do it due to the space that is given. From this, we moved on to concentrating on how people in Vietnam actually rest. The ways and methods of how they rest depending on what they are doing, for example, eating, sleeping, chatting or playing cards or chess. Through observations, we noticed that they oftenly lift their legs up on to a object or against the wall to sleep or watching the television. This shows how they actually adapt to their surroundings instead of the surrounding adpats to them.
Secondly, the Vietnamese love to sleep in their shops or in the public when they are free from customers or from work. They would take something as a support of their head and squezze themselves into a space where they can get to sleep on. For example, table top, motorbicycle, floor and underneath tables. Last but not least, it’s the medium that they use to sit on. They apprently use everything that is able to support their weight to sit. For example, cupboard boxes, mats, stack of papers and stools. Also their tables and chairs are short and small and we noticed that they like looking towards the road when they are drinking. They also use their furnitures in a multipurposed way where a stool can be something to sit on and something to put stuff on. With all these, we decided to work on portraying how people in Vietnam actually rest using the straw mats. Straw mats are something people use as a medium to rest on often as it’s cooling and well ventilated and also it’s comfortable to rest
on. So from this properties of the straw mat, we changed the shape of the straw mats into different forms on how poeple in Vietnam rest. From the three supporting factors previously and inputting it into the straw mats. It’s a series of three furnitures made from the straw mats to potray three different kinds of rest in Vietnam. From this three, one shows the way they lie down with a support on the head, another shows how they lift up their legs up to the air and the last is the way how they sit on the short table and chairs. When this three forms of furniture is combined, it will show the big picture of rest in Vietnam. The properties of the straw mats that are supporting this proposal is it’s flexibility, light-weightness, shape-securing, strong and breathablility. This helps how a person can experience comfort when sitting on the straw mats and also how the straw mats can stay in it’s shape.
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01 02 03 04 05 04
A men sleeping on his motorcycle and putting his leg up leaning agains the handle of the motorcycle A lady leaning her leg against the wall while watching the television A lady sleeping in her shop with some thing on her head as the pillow and put ing her leg on the dustbin Using the stool as something multipur posed. As a table and as a stool. Sitting by the road side and reading newspapers. Noticed that the chairs are very short in height.
Wire Mockups
Testing out different ways of framing
Using wires to shape out the form of the three different furnitures to get a better overview of the furnitures as a whole in order to continue to the actual scale of it.
Using the method of slotting the wires when weaving the straw mat with the loom. And then bending it into the shape after it’s done. Exploring on this method to see if the wire is strong enough to support the whole structure and also if the wires blend in well with the straws.
Exploring different forms and ways on how the furnitures can portray rest in Vietnam and coming into conclusion of this three mockups where the form of the final three furnitures will be. From this three, we will then move on to taking the measurements and then to making the final 1:1 scale.
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Known as the ‘Kiao-Ka’ bed where it portrays how people lift up their legs upwards and leaning on to something The normal flat bed with a pillow shaped bump and the top Low in height chair and table to show how peo ple in Vietnam sit on them and also how they face the road sides while eating/drinking
02 03
02
03
Dimensions
470
Foam Shaping Cutting the foam into the shape of the furniture of the scale of 1:1 using the dimension of the furnitures earlier on as a guide and
100
R24
Calculating the dimensions of the three furnitures and from measuring the length, width and height of the stool to a size of a single bed.
10 40
450
40
1900
530
450
340
1900
10 2370
455
160
R24
250
270
270
510
500
250
R24
10 50 26
230
26
325
520
345
280
10 50
9003
50
140
28.0
50
325
435
325
900
230
5001
40
340
340
10 1715
1550
Wire Sculpting Showing how when the three furnitures are connected how would it look like. The picture on the left show different ways on piecing the furnitures up depending on the user itself. When the three furnitures are pieced up it will looking like the landscape of Vietnam and also showing the big picture on resting in Vietnam.
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Making 1:1 wire skeleton of the chairs and table furniture using the dimension of the furnitures as a guide.
also using it as a support for the prototype of the furniture. The foam is used for the bed and lifting of the leg. After that, cutting the
straw mat into shape and placing the straw mat over the foam.
Chair and Table dimensions / mm
455
50mm at each end of the the chair to allow people to know that there’s something to join at the end of it instead of it marking an end.
R24
250
270
270
500
250
10 50 26
230
26
325
520
280
345
28.0
325
435
340
50
10
1715
325
230
50
Bed with Pillow dimensions / mm
470
100
R24
10 40
450
40
1900
530
450
340
1900
10 2370
“Kiao-Ka” Bed ( Leg Lifting Bed ) dimensions / mm 160
R24
510 10 900
350
900
500
140
140
340
10 1550
Different ways to join the furnitures up When the three furnitures are joined together it shows the big picture of rest in Vietnam. It also portrays the cityscape of Vietnam itself.
‘Kiao-Ka’ Bed
Bed with Pillow
The first furniture is the ‘Kiao-Ka’ bed, which is inspired from the way Vietnamese rest. We noticed that when they tend to lift their leg up onto something when they are sleeping or lying down watching the television. We did a form that resemblems the way the Vietnamese lift their legs up.
Secondly, it’s the Bed with Pillow where we observed that Vietnamese love to sleep when they have free-time; for example when there are no customers. They will then use something they think it’s comfortable to rest their head on when they are sleeping, be it on the floor, under the table or on the table.
There’s also three ways of using this furniture including ‘Kiao-Ka’-ing on the bed itself.
This furniture can be placed in a shop or be used as a household furniture.
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Sitting on the top of the bed and resting your leg on the slope Sitting and leaning against the slope Lying down and putting your leg up the top of the bed
This furniture can be placed in a shop or be used as a household furniture.
Chair and Table
Combining all together
Last but not least, it’s the Chair and Table furniture where it portrays the small stools and tables that the Vietnamese use frequently when they are eating, playing cards/chess or reading the newspapers etc.
Putting all three furnitures together it will then show the big picture of rest in Vietnam. It also portrays the cityscape of Vietnam itself.
The Vietnamese also sit facing the main road when they are drinking either with friends or alone. We noticed it’s a form of habit in them.
With this furniture, the user is able to sit facing the table or sit facing the side and using the table as a side table.
This furniture can be placed in a shop or be used as a household furniture.
This three furnitures can be used in shops for example the ‘Kiao-Ka’ Bed can be used as a resting seat for Shisha in Singapore. The Chair and Table can be use in a bar and etc. The three furniture can also be used at home for own comfortable and or as a decorative object, remembering the culture and ritual in Vietnam.