Arad’s Horns series marked a crucial step for the designer, away from the readymade and into fabrication from scratch. Each object in the series was based on a simple manipulation of flat aluminum sheets, which are joined together with curved lengths of steel tubing. The title refers to sharply pointed triangles that were used as “props” for a dining table and related side chairs. This imposing armchair lacks this aggressive element, but it still exemplifies the tough “post-industrial” look typical of Arad’s work at the time. The sides of the chair are cut out and then bent at a ninety-degree angle, to form the arms. The seat and back are made up of 62 horizontally stretched springs; the curve of their placement is visible in perforations through the sides. The aluminum surface is ground to create a reflective pattern, an allusion to the Cubi sculptures of David Smith of the 1960s, whose hard-edged geometric quality the Horns series shares.

Materials: Aluminum, steel, PVC covered galvanized springs