Softwork

by Barber & Osgerby

As work is no longer tied to a specific location, new behavioural patterns have developed, which are gradually finding their way into the office. For example, the sofa has become a place on which to work – even though it is not necessarily suited to this task from an ergonomic viewpoint.

With this in mind, Vitra and the designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby have devised and developed the new seating system Soft Work, uniting expertise from the home, office and public sectors. Instead of creating a working environment centred around desks with peripheral sofas, Soft Work has developed into a system in which table workstations are focused around a seating landscape. Barber and Osgerby see this as a long-term development: ‘The workstation is going the same way as the dining room – it’s disappearing as an archetype. The desk has had its day. With mobile technology you need a place to sit occasionally, or a comfortable place to hang out. That’s our belief.’