Archive feature, first published 2018-09-20.
Visual artist Tatiane Freitas 'fixes' broken wooden furniture by replacing all the missing pieces with translucent acrylic as a part of her ongoing series called My Old New Chair.
Her designs restore functionality to the chairs while acknowledging the history of each piece and looking pretty darn amazing at the same time.
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A repair that leaves the missing part visible
Tatiane Freitas' My Old New Chair series uses translucent acrylic where parts of wooden furniture are missing. The contrast does not try to make the object look untouched. Instead, it allows the older material and the intervention to remain distinguishable. Follow the outline of a chair and notice where your eye crosses from wood to clear material. That continuity is part of the work's appeal. These are documented design objects; a photograph alone is not a specification for repairing or assessing the safety of furniture at home.
The join tells a different story from an invisible repair
Freitas leaves a clear contrast between old wood and the added acrylic. Attention falls on the transition as much as on the recovered outline. The series invites a question about repair’s purpose: whether restoring use must also hide intervention, or whether a visible addition can become part of the object’s identity.
For a different transformation of furniture design, see Miniature Cat Furniture From Japanese Craftspeople.
A closer look
Trace the original wooden shape through the transparent additions. The contrast asks an interesting design question: can a repair acknowledge what was lost while still allowing the object to feel complete?
Links from the original feature: Tatiane Freitas
Related reading: My Dog Sighs Turns Discarded Objects Into Art.
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