A Bench for Two People

Built as a juncture for wayward paths, A Bench for Two People contains both an evolving memory and a knack for telling its story.

Knee grooves and a wide-grip handlebar provide for optimal interaction.

Manual exploration activates a two-step process:

A submerged acrylic cavern flickers with the reflection of the last person to look inside.

As the trapdoor opens, viewers simultaneously observe a recording of their predecessors and are themselves recorded for the next iteration, forming a continuous chain of people connected in space but displaced throughout time.

Once the door closes, the bench erases and replaces its last experience with a glimpse of its newest user. The moments it provides are consequently private and unrepeatable - connections made through absence.

PROCESS
Designed in collaboration with Ethan Anderson. During initial brainstorming, “play” was a key word when thinking about living furniture - specifically, how can an everyday object both promote exploration and restructure concepts of personal space/understandings of solitude? We set out to create a bench that could make its own contribution to the conversation.

Maple and poplar. Runs on Arduino and Raspberry Pi.