Date of Award
Spring 5-31-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Department
Furniture
First Advisor
Lothar Windels
Second Advisor
Emily Cornell Du Houx
Third Advisor
Jonah Takagi
Abstract
“Soft Potential” highlights the potential of furniture and objects to encourage idiosyncratic and open usage through flexible, modular systems. I utilize modularity as a major tool in prompting interaction and transferring agency. Modular systems embody flexibility in form and function and enable people to tailor designs according to their own ideals. This reflects my aim of designing non-prescriptive work, exercising a soft approach to furniture design.
In this work, softness is a rejection of rigidity in support of human tenderness and agency. Softness in furniture can be both literal and metaphorical — embracing the contours of the human body while inviting diverse interpretations and usage. Softness is a guiding principle. Color, curved lines, textiles, and wood are combined to invite tactile interaction.
This thesis and accompanying body of work is a combined effort to push the emotive, participatory, and spatial potential of objects and furniture.
Recommended Citation
Choi, Jennifer, "Soft Potential" (2025). Masters Theses. 1515.
https://digitalcommons.risd.edu/masterstheses/1515
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.