Here’s my list of immediate observations upon first viewing Passad’s Easy Lounge: 1. It bears a certain resemblance to Frank Gehry’s Wiggle Chair; 2. it bears an even greater resemblance to Anthony Marschak’s Spring Chair; 3. it reminds me of how self-supported (cantilevered, in this case) structures perpetually fulfill the modernist maxim “form follows function”; and 4. it’s well-ventilated. While that might be sufficient to satisfy any mid-summer yearnings for a cool and light means of repose, the truly enviable qualities of the Easy Lounge are more than skin deep (though they’re that too).

Easy Lounge. Designed and Manufactured by Passad.

The piece–like all of the Phillippines-based Passad’s products–is a sustainable offering made from the well-sustained offerings of the gmelina tree. If, like me, you’re wondering not only how to pronounce “gmelina,” but also whereof such wondrous wood, answers abound. The timber is native to tropical moist forests across Southeast Asia and has been widely introduced in like climates, including the Philippines. The tree grows wondrously fast and it has great pulping properties; it also thrives in a wide variety of soils; it has excellent resistance to drought and deluge both, as well as to heat, fire, insects, and frost. And the gmelina root is reputedly an excellent curative for abdominal maladies. But foremost on the minds of the artisans at Passad is the ways in which gmelina chips can be carefully formed into durable and beautiful furnishings: “very much like assembling the fragmented pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, local artisans slowly and randomly put together each gmelina chip, piece by piece. No chip, no matter how small, ever goes to waste. Finally, the object is sculpted by hand.

Chips of gmelina wood used to create Passad furnishings and the Artisan hand-crafting of Passad’s gmelina wood furniture.

Easy Lounge. Designed and Manufactured by Passad.

The process sounds to me like spiritual kin to that of Chris Rucker’s re-purposed plywood. If Rucker uses construction leavings to fashion fashionable furnishings, Passad employs the concept behind the makings of OSB (piecing together cast-offs), while eliminating the toxic and resource-intensive components (glue and high pressure and heat). The result is time-consuming and painstaking to be sure, but also alluring, textural, strong, and smart. The Easy Lounge, then, is as green as the rainforest itself–locally made, sustainable, healthful, and beautiful.

Via ChairBlog.