01 / Overview
A custom commission that became a product.
Brava began as a compact contemporary sectional for the company’s CEO. I designed the original form and frame, then worked directly on the fabrication and upholstery development needed to turn the idea into finished prototypes. The CEO loved the result, and the design was subsequently adopted into the Scout Label line.
02 / Problem
Large Impact, Small Footprint
We wanted to make something that looked luxurious and high-end, matching the finish of previous high-ticket pieces made from expensive mohair. However, we had a much smaller footprint to work with. The finished piece needed to be sleek and slim enough not to crowd the room it lived in, but it also needed to read as a luxury item and support three or more people at once.
03 / Process
Refine the Form Visually; Dot the I’s with Manufacturing Problem-Solving.
I started designing with an eye toward contemporary studio upholstery and vintage soft goods listed on 1stDibs. I was particularly studious of the tight upholstery and postmodern, sculptural forms of vintage Italian upholstery. Those types of forms would work well in a small footprint and still make a visual impact.
I worked on several iterations of a solid-model design, extruding, cutting, revolving, and shaping a handful of bodies to represent the sectional.
I developed the frame geometry after working through solid models of the sectional’s form. I was able to use those models as references while developing the plywood frame. Fleshing out the frame construction can be a long process depending on the complexity and size of the sectional, and unique features like the eased arms create manufacturing problems that need to be solved before they reach workers on the floor.
To boot, with us on a tight timeline, my foreman suggested a last-minute change to the arm shape after the frame was completely assembled.
04 / Solution
Two buildable pieces with one continuous identity.
I created a process while working at Scout that centered on identifying the basic form of the object, then fleshing it out with patternable parts. For any sectional, couch, or even upholstered chair, I used a parametrically constrained pattern sketch for an end panel. I could experiment with dimensions for seat height, seat depth, and overall height. Using rules of thumb for these dimensions, along with an eye for matching the panel to the finished form, created a panel that could be used directly in the piece or as a pattern for constructing other parts of it.
The eased arms were the most difficult part of the sectional’s frame to fabricate. I took an even more surgical approach than usual with them. I designed the sectional’s frame apart from the arm sections, then created solid bodies that matched the shape I needed in the arm’s place. From there, I split the solid body strategically to create the components that made it up. Some of these pieces could not be CNC-fabricated, so I hand-prototyped and patterned the arms.
When my foreman suggested a new arm shape, I went back to my CAD models and employed the same strategy, starting with solid modeling before splitting the form into components. Within the afternoon, I had CNC-machined a handful of pieces that defined the radius the arm wrapped around, then wrapped the outside and top of the new arm in flexible plywood to match the construction of the other arms.
I built the arms used in the finished commission, as well as the rest of the sectional frame. I produced production drawings for the piece and an assembly guide for the novice frame builder I was working with. After the frame was built, our upholstery workroom patterned the piece in dark-brown mohair remnants before making the finished piece in champagne mohair.
05 / Outcome
A One-Off Commission Becomes a Production Piece
The Brava, initially named “Flann Sectional” in my documentation, moved from being a custom executive brief to being a Scout Label product. Since I left Scout, it has been reproduced several times and is available for purchase in a number of finishes. That last-minute change to the arm defines most of the Bravas I have seen produced since then, but during a recent visit to their showroom, I saw a new Brava that matched my original design intent perfectly.