DESIGN NAME: GEOMETRY
PRIMARY FUNCTION: Multifunctional furniture
INSPIRATION: If a house is like a theatre, the furniture in it just like the actor. The pose and position of them have invisibly impact on our life. Yifeng Wang wants to bring a new fresh life to the furniture, which can deliver more feelings and meanings to people. Mathematics as a pure theory subject, may make people feel boring at most of the time. However, actually Math itself is full of principles and quiet a charming major. He tries to combine some mathematical principles with the furniture design. When people interacting with the furniture, they could understand the entertainment and fascination of Mathematics and admire it. Meanwhile, the user would have a deeper comprehension on the creativity of art and design and how it can endow a charm on our daily life.
UNIQUE PROPERTIES / PROJECT DESCRIPTION: GEOMETRY is a set of wooden furniture. Yifeng Wang applied several mathematical principles, such as Square Mosaic, Rectangle Mosaic, The Pythagorean Principle, Triangle, Ellipse, Triangle Mosaic, Pulley on my design. In this way, when people using it, they will understand and gain the knowledge of these principles. He tries to combine some mathematical principles with the furniture design. When people interacting with the furniture, they will understand the entertainment and fascination of Mathematics and admire it. Meanwhile, the user will have a deeper comprehension on the creativity of art and design and how it can endow a charm on our daily life. At the same time, this project delivers a thinking of the possibility of the variety furniture design. It is also an exploration on universal education of mathematics and other majors.
OPERATION / FLOW / INTERACTION: This project, Geometry, which presents as a whole, consists of seven works. Thus the individual presentation and their relationship with the whole set are well considered. Each product conveys a mathematical principle through the function.
1. The Pythagorean Principle - Cups: The brim of each cubic cup can makes up a right-angled triangle. When all cups are at the same height, the water volume of the cup represents the square of the brim. Thus the whole volume of small cups is as much as the big one, which proof the Pythagorean theorem.
2. Square Mosaic Principle - High Table: Use the form and principle of squares, design a special joint for table drawers. When pulling out the drawer, all the drawer will open at the same time by rotating itself 180 degrees to the outside. The drawer can rotate both clockwise and anticlockwise to close off.
3. Rectangle Mosaic Principle - Tea Table: Using the principle of rectangular mosaic, two rectangular drawers can be pulled out simultaneously and go to oppose direction.
4. Triangle Mosaic Principle - Chest of drawers: This chest which uses the mosaic principle of triangle make up all by drawers and each of them can rotated independently, therefore the whole cabinet could be many transformed into different shapes, forming like an interesting sculptural work. 

5. Ellipse Principle - Bookcase: According to the basic principle of ellipse, two sticks which connect by a string are adjustable along the side of the elliptic bookcase, which enable people to control the compartmental space. It creates a convenient way for people to use.
6. Pulley Principle - Lamp: Two light bulbs are connected by one fixed pulley and one movable pulley, moving one of them can control the other. However, the moving distance of the light bulb in movable pulley is a half of the fixed pulley. 

7. Triangle Principle - Chair: Inspired by the stability of the triangle, the structure of this chair has angles in many different planes instead of any parallel structures. 

PROJECT DURATION AND LOCATION: The project started in November 2014 in Beijing and finished in May 2015 in Beijing, and was exhibited in Beijing June-July 2015.
FITS BEST INTO CATEGORY: Furniture Design
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PRODUCTION / REALIZATION TECHNOLOGY: The most important thing in this project is to find out the most proper way to combine the mathematical principles with the furniture. Only can the design endow a new life to the furniture when you choosing the right principle and the right furniture. All works are made of solid wood. Most of the joint are connected by traditional mortise-and-tenon structure and few of them are metal connections, which ensure the work become more clear and simple. To guarantee the final effect of the work, innovative method has been adapted during the manufacture process.
1. The Pythagorean Principle - Cups: The brim of each cubic cup can makes up a right-angled triangle. When all cups are at the same height, the water volume of the cup represents the square of the brim. Thus the whole volume of small cups is as much as the big one, which proof the Pythagorean theorem.
2. Square Mosaic Principle - High Table: Use the form and principle of squares, design a special joint for table drawers. When pulling out the drawer, all the drawer will open at the same time by rotating itself 180 degrees to the outside. The drawer can rotate both clockwise and anticlockwise to close off.
3. Rectangle Mosaic Principle - Tea Table: Using the principle of rectangular mosaic, two rectangular drawers can be pulled out simultaneously and go to oppose direction.
4. Triangle Mosaic Principle - Chest of drawers: This chest which uses the mosaic principle of triangle make up all by drawers and each of them can rotated independently, therefore the whole cabinet could be many transformed into different shapes, forming like an interesting sculptural work. 

5. Ellipse Principle - Bookcase: According to the basic principle of ellipse, two sticks which connect by a string are adjustable along the side of the elliptic bookcase, which enable people to control the compartmental space. It creates a convenient way for people to use.
6. Pulley Principle - Lamp: Two light bulbs are connected by one fixed pulley and one movable pulley, moving one of them can control the other. However, the moving distance of the light bulb in movable pulley is a half of the fixed pulley. 

7. Triangle Principle - Chair: Inspired by the stability of the triangle, the structure of this chair has angles in many different planes instead of any parallel structures. 

SPECIFICATIONS / TECHNICAL PROPERTIES: High Table 
510mm×510mm×950mm,Chair 700mm×740mm×750mm,Lamp 430mm×430mm×1750mm,Tea Table 620mm×400mm×600mm, Bookcase 800mm×280mm×300mm, Chest of Drawers 360mm×620mm×1580mm, Cups 45mm×45mm×120mm60mm×60mm×120mm75mm×
75mm×120mm.
The sizes of the work are strictly controlled, in order to indicate both the mathematical principles and interaction between the user and the furniture.
TAGS: Furniture, Design, Mathematics, Interdisciplinary, Education, Magic, Entertainment.
RESEARCH ABSTRACT: Furniture design has a long history. The furniture, as the essential part of our daily life, has been changing through thousands of years. If a house is like a theatre, the furniture in it just like the actor. The pose and position of them have invisibly impact on our life. Yifeng Wang wants to bring a new fresh life to the furniture, which can deliver more feeling and meaning to people.
Mathematics as a pure theory subject, make people feel boring at most of the time. However, actually Math itself is full of principles and quiet a charming major. He tries to combine some mathematical principles with the furniture design. When people interacting with the furniture, they will understand the entertainment and fascination of Mathematics and admire it. Meanwhile, the user will have a deeper comprehension on the creativity of art and design and how it can endow a charm on our daily life.
When Yifeng designing this set of works, he did plentiful research of furniture brands. After decided the concept of this project, he read and learn lot of mathematics knowledge, in order to bring the mathematical principles into furniture design. During the design and manufacture process, he had been through numerous failures, however, after insistent attempts, the work finally had been well presented. Yifeng thinks the whole value of this set of works is that it provides people more thinking space. At the same time, it is a brave attempt on a new life style.
The work enables people to understand an abstract mathematical principle by interacting with it. It not only makes our education more entertaining and humanized, but also colour our life.
CHALLENGE: Throughout the design process, Yifeng Wang creatively combined common furniture and mathematics together. No longer design through the material or crafts simply, but also through the education and culture which the furniture carried, consider about more possibilities of design, then present the knowledge through the furniture which is the item most relevant to our daily life.
ADDED DATE: 2015-11-15 07:48:31
TEAM MEMBERS (1) : Wang Yifeng
IMAGE CREDITS: Image #1: Photographer Jinghui Li, 2015. Image #2:Photographer Jinghui Li, 2015. Image #3:Photographer Jinghui Li, 2015. Image #4:Photographer Jinghui Li, 2015. Video:Photographer Jinghui Li, Yifeng Wang, 2015.
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