The first indication that Leif.designpark is a clever design team comes from their whimsical homepage, where a cartoon series of building debacles eventually forms their logo, Leif. Made up of three designers who “collaborate with artists of various fields,” the Japan-based Leif seeks out “new possibilities and unexpected discoveries.” And the Tsubomi Chair defines their viewpoint.

Tsubomi Chair. Designed and manufactured by Leif.designpark.

According to the Leif website, the Tsubomi “was born from an image of a bright future,” which may serve to explain its interesting chartreuse color. This color mimics nature, perhaps a strange moss. Its elemental hue is no mistake: Leif compares the Tsubomi to a flower growing in KuKunochi’s Forest, the Shinto god of trees. Root-like and branch-like, the lounge chair’s backrest extends towards the sky in organic growths-making the user of the Tsubomi a metaphorical bud.

From within the inflorescence, you will undoubtedly relax-germinating slowly in your own life cycle. The Tsubomi is a lounge chair, after all. It sits low on the ground, close to the earth, spreading like the very moss it represents. Let’s get this straight: this is not a chair for working or dining. You must lounge. I can see a rhizomatic group of them inside a stylish cocktail lounge like New Zealand’s Bar Zazu or a modern athenaeum like Koolhaus’ Seattle Public Library.