Not too long ago, we came across the work of Savannah College of Art and Design students at NeoCon2009, who had one of the most refined and beautifully designed booths at the Chicago Merchandise Mart. Quite intelligently, SCAD actually produces some of the work of their furniture design students. As a writer who’s somewhat fed up with fancy computer-generated designs that lack any counterpart in the real world (and sometimes lack all sense of engineering), I appreciate SCAD’s commitment to reality–to the three-dimensional truth of well-designed furniture.

Embroidered Chairs. Designed by Christine Gentz.

Current SCAD MFA candidate (how’s that for an obtuse series of acronyms?) Christine Gentz is the creative mind behind Embroidered Chairs, a set of four white lacquer chairs that feature subtle embroidery. If you’re immediately associating embroidery with lace and doilies and all things frilly, think again. With Embroidered Chairs, Gentz is breathing new life into a timeworn technique. She explains, “I like to use clean lines and simple forms, yet also include unexpected details to make my pieces stand out.”

The low profile of Embroidered Chairs, coupled with the sleek white lacquer, work against the staid associations of embroidery. Nevertheless, Gentz has used an old-fashioned form of production and decoration, since the upholstery is hand-embroidered. Don’t consider it a Southern talent, however. Gentz lives in Brooklyn, despite her Savannah education. These Embroidered Chairs serve as ambassadors for an innovative furniture design program. At shopSCAD, you will get an instant reflection of the college’s artistic bent simply by reading their pages’ chosen quotes. Under Furniture, you’ll find this gem from Fran Lebowitz: “No animal should ever jump on the furniture unless absolutely certain that he can hold his own in the conversation.” I might argue that my Egyptian Husky (part Husky, part Saluki) would hold his own atop the contradictory Embroidered Chair. His paradoxical lineage would speak volumes.