In our 6th edition of Considered & Sustainable news, we look at the N02™ Recycle Chair. N02™ is Fritz Hansen's first chair produced in coloured, recycled Polypropylene. This all-purpose chair is made of upcycled plastic household waste.
This strong, stackable chair is designed in collaboration with Japanese studio nendo and is inspired by a simple crease of paper on the designer’s worktable. The folded paper translated into a crease in the chair’s shell that makes the design support the sitter’s upper and lower back.
ABOUT THE DESIGNER
Oki Sato is a Japanese architect, designer, and the founder of nendo design studio (offices in both Toyko & Milan). He was born in Toronto, Canada, attended Wasenda University in Tokyo and graduated in 2002 with a Masters of Arts degree in Architecture.
He subsequently founded nendo in his parents garage in Tokyo. He has said that "Design is about making decisions. A person can only make a certain amount of decisions each day, it's really important to keep your mind empty."
Sato also says that meeting Issey Miyake had a significant influence in his work and practice.
His first exhibition, called "Streeterior", was introduced in Tokyo and then in Milan, Italy in 2003.
Sato has received prizes such as Good Design Award, German Design Award, Elle Deco International Design Award, and was named the "Designer of the Year" by Wallpaper magazine in 2012
Sato also designed the cauldron for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
N02™ Recycle can be considered a statement of intent from Fritz Hansen, who have extensive experience creating beautiful, well designed stacking chairs such as the iconic Series 7™ and Ant™. The N02™ Recycle is the latest chair design in that tradition.
‘The fact that the material is constructed from everyday recycled plastic creates an extra connection between the user and the chair. It’s an accessible design made for everyday use and made from everyday recycled, household plastics,’ says Oki Sato.
The chair’s elegant shell is made of circular plastic, meaning it is not only made from recycled plastic, but it can be recycled again at the end of its life.
The N02™ Recycle chair has earned itself the prestigious EU-Ecolabel, the official European environmental certification. Durable and practical, the chairs have been widely praised for their longevity and exceptional quality.
“The EU-Ecolabel stands for strict environmental requirements in all relevant phases of the product’s life cycle. Everything from raw materials to production, use, disposal and recycling is included in the assessment, ´ says Christian Andresen, Head of Design at Fritz Hansen. ´It is important to be able to reduce the overall impact on the environment and climate.
To reduce transportation to the manufacturing plant, the plastic used for N02™ Recycle comes from household plastic waste collected, processed and upcycled in central Europe.
Seven shell colour options are inspired by earthy, warm tones in Scandinavian nature. These colours and multiple leg options make N02™ Recycle a strong solution for home dining rooms, home offices, auditoriums, meeting rooms or as extra, multi-purpose seating.
EXPLORE N02 RECYCLE