Donkey Evolution Project
Artist Donkey
Jan Farn Chi
Isokon Donkey Evolution
This is a project during my second year studying furniture and product design in Nottingham Trent University. "Donkey" is a specific English furniture made by Isokon with plywood, aeroply, and MDF. During this project we visited the factory of Isokon, undersdading the manufacture process, the features and utilising of machines, and material. Then we had a chat about our ideas with Chris McCourt who is the current director of Isokon Plus. After all development, sacal models and full size model testing, we started making our final idea with the real material.
- Jack Pritchard on the Breuer’s Short chair with the Isokon Penguin Donkey 2
Isokon, a Funiture sutdio is founded in 1935 by Jack Pritchard a British entrepreneur and visionary. Pritchard wanted to help promote a pan-European, indeed worldwide, type of modern design and was especially determined to persuade the conservative British consumer that modern was best. It was Pritchard’s former experience in the plywood business and his role in building (with the architect Wells Coates) the first block of modern flats in Britain, Lawn Road Flats (also known as the Isokon Building) in Hampstead, that led him to start a furniture company
1982, Jack Pritchard asked Chris McCourt to carry on the production and sale of Isokon pieces. Since then McCourt has reintroduced, for the first time since 1939, classics such as the Short Chair, Dining Table, and the original Penguin Donkey. With original pieces from the late 1930’s selling for many thousands of pounds, Isokon Plus continues to make available to a wider market nearly all of the original Isokon designs. The founding traditions of Isokon continue today with the development and production of new products from contemporary designers.
Isokon Nesting Table designed by Marcel Breuer
Isokon Long Chair designed by Marcel Breuer
ISOKON PRODUCTS - BOTTLESHIP
Isokon Bottleships have the similar language to Isokon donkeys, which are mainly designed for storahing few bottles of wine and glasses with light and protable body.
ORIGINAL ISOKON BOTTLESHIP Designed by Ernest Race in 1939
ISOKON BOTTLESHIP MARK 2 Designed by Ernest Race in 1963
ISOKON BOTTLESHIP Designed by Azumis in 2003
Original Penguin Donkey Designed by Egon Riss in 1939
Penguin Donkey Mark 2 Designed by Ernest Race in 1963
The fratures of Isokon Donkeys
Penguin Donkey Mark 3 Designed by Shin and Azumi in 2003
- Two sided storage and two open end spaces - Standing on four legs - Panniers have no hidden parts and their angle allows user to take items out easily, plus they holding items securely on place - The storage place can fit books of multiple size and shape - Light enough to be moved and friendly to be approached
The Donkey was called this way because of its four legs and two panniers on each side. It turned out that the side shelves were exactly the right size for the new paperback books being published by Penguin at the same time, so the publisher put leaflets of the Donkey inside those books. Soon after, Donkey was renamed to the Penguin Donkey. The books were stacked in the side elements (appropriately referred to as panniers) and newspapers and magazines were slotted into the centre. The organic, curvilinear shape of the Donkey, raised on legs rounded in elevation, was made by the use of very thin plywood.
What is donkey?
Manufacture
Plywood
Features
• The alternating grains and use of adhesives in plywood make it as stable or more stable than regular wood • Plywood is sometimes less prone to absorb and/or release moisture • The alternating grain pattern resists expansion, shrinkage and warping.
Plywood is a sheet material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another.
Maple Plywood
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final choice
Plywood Types
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Birch Plywood
Bamboo Plywood
Red Oak Plywood
Ash Plywood
Walnut Plywood
Cherry Plywood
Beech Plywood
White Oak Plywood
Pine Plywood
Plywood and Lamination Pressing
Bend flexible and adhensive plywood with vacuum system by vacuum pressing and drying.
Steps
・Make a mold fit to the curve which you want to bend on the wood. Sometimes migh be steady with male(top) and feamale(bottom) parts (see right picture). Can be made with MDF or blue foam. ・Glu wood layars together with cascamite*. ・Put your model in the plastic bag, and seal the bag, then leave it to dry for about 6 hours ・ hold it and vacuum up with a vacuum laminatior.
Bent Lamination by Clamping
After glue the layers, set the model on the mode ,and fix it with clamps; after around 6 hours it will be a perfect curved shape.
Cascamite (also known as Polymite)
Cascamite is an adhesive, which is suitable for load bearing and laminating.
CNC Machines cuttung
We used CNC machine to cut the plywood sheets, and something to be aware of when planning on project is that router bits leave a small radius on corners.
Plywood Joint Plywood's multiple layers (or plies) make it more economical and resistant to seasonal movement than solid wood, especially for large panels. But those plies also weaken butt joints in project construction.
Biscuits joints
Full-width dado or groove joint
Spline joints
Dowels joints
Evolution
810 mm
430 mm
1939
395 mm
1963
410 mm 410 mm
2003
2017
Donkey 4 Concept and Target Market Insdead of other donkeys designed for using in a gernaral living room, donkey 4 is designed for artists.
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Features in an art studeo...
Through interviws with artists and oberservation, there were mutiple positions can be seen when artists doing painting; including sitting on the floor, sitting on a stool, standing. For storaging, there are some gerneral things always can be noticed in an art studio, which are palete, various size of paintbrushed, water container, tubes, books...
Development At the start of designing my donkey, I was trying to make all the tools can fit in it and wanted to let a part of the donkey can be used as a drawing board.
- First full size model
However, when I made the first mock-up, it was too bulky. After that, I started to think of what tools are most frequently used by artists and refined the size and function.
W 480 mm L 480 mm H 640 mm
With disassembling the mock-up and playing on it, I came up a new dynamic design. Then I kept testing and refined the storaging size with painting tools.
Trying various ways to hold paint brushes and a water container
Thinking about comprehensive esthetics, the angles and shapes of some panels were adjusted few times.
- Second full size model
Considering for people might use it with sitting or standing, I decided to make a portable lid which can be taken apart when painting on a table.
550 cm 175 cm
Final Design
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b c d
e
Fratures a. The hole with the bottom groove can be used to put water container or paintbrushes securely b. Grooves can hold tools saftly with a thumb c. The hole provides user can move the lid easily d. Four legs support the lid standing on a table e. An open area allows user to plac free-sized palette
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e
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Manufacturing Process
a. Cutting plywood sheets by using CNC machine b. Making marks on the sheets for jointing locations c. Dilling holes for placing biscuits and dowls d. Trying to assembly with clamps e. Using sandpaper to make the surface be smooth f. Glueding with PVA and assemblying the pieces g. Final sanding h. Applying sanding sealer to close off the pores of the wood and lays a base for the topcoats
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5R
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305
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CNC Cutting Sheets and Joints
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D
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C E G
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I K L
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M O
N P Q
ABGHIJKLMNOPQ - Dominos Joint B+CDEF - Dowel Joint JLQ - Slot together Constructure
Jan
Farn Chi