Ron Arad’s Big Easy Armchair is one of those seminal pieces that puts modern design trends under the scope. First conceived of in 1988 as a sculptural piece made of coarse and roughly welded sheet-steel, the “Big Easy” was initially easy on the eyes but not on the butt, back, or legs (nor on the wallet, as it turned out). More of an art installation or a museum piece than a functional chair, the original Big Easy commanded the price of great art-upwards of $150,000 at one auction.

Puntiamo al Cuore. Designed by Ran Arad.

But notwithstanding Arad’s appreciation for the design/art world’s approbation of his talent, under Arad (and manufacturing titans Vitra and Moroso), the chair has metamorphosed over the past 20 years with an eye to functionality and consumer use. Among these multiple incarnations are the colorful smooth lacquered versions of the early 90s; a number in rotationally moulded recyclable coloured polyethylene-suitable for outdoor use; and the “Big E” edition in inviting plush upholstery. These, in additon to the multiple museum quality special editions (notably, one modeled on the aesthetic of the original Big Easy), have given the chair quite a pedigree.

Big Easy Chair. Designed by Ron Arad. Manufactured by Moroso.

And this pedigree continues with the selection of a new Big Easy as the poster child for Verona’s Abitare Il Tempo furniture fair in September. This version-whimsically dubbed “Puntiamo al Cuore” (“Pinpointing the Heart”), is essentially the upholstered version customized by Arad with a painting in pins. By skillfull pricking the piece with hundreds of said implement, Arad has drawn a design with the tiny alabaster heads; the effect is very like a silhouette highlighted in miniscule points of light-sort of like a marquee chair among chairs-and it does double duty as the event’s welcome wagon, since it spells “Abitare Il Tempo” on the inside of the seat back. The piece’s signature profile remains unchanged, however-Moroso’s latest Big Easy retains the retro-futurist tint of the original. With its over-sized arms and off-kilter profile, it suggests a kind of anarchy of the fantastic, as if the future had become the province of roguish pranksters and artists of asynchrony and the absurd-something along the lines of Dr. Seuss meets Samuel Beckett meets Salvador Dalí. If anything, the latest Big Easy suggests that the future of design-however inscrutable-will at least involve a bit of fun.