Konstantin Grcic: Last year you made a brilliant debut with the OTO series. The project was very personal. This year I asked you to design a family of stools in different heights. Does the new project relate to OTO, or what other references were important to you?
Studio Œ: This time, the brief for a bar stool was more precise about the setting and function of the furniture. The process leading to the final concept was therefore different. However, there are similarities between our two projects for MATTIAZZI, which can be found in the haptic appearance. We were amazed by the immediate impulse of people who encounter OTO for the first time to touch it and trace its soft lines. We wanted to incorporate this tactile quality into the character of DOPO, which invites a sensual interaction with the stool.
The way the stool’s legs wrap around and rise above the levels of the stool is reminiscent of trees and shrubs that slowly grow around fences, walls or other plants, eventually merging with them over time.

KG: The bar stool is certainly the main protagonist of the series. What do you think makes a good bar stool?
Œ: There’s no better way to understand than to experience it firsthand. We went on field trips to various bars to figure out what we expect from a good bar stool by observing behaviours and movements. Leaning casually against the stool, turning from left to right on the seat, and sometimes not even sitting on it but placing a jacket on top. A good bar stool should be a supportive base that provides security whilst allowing you to freely reposition yourself in the room and in relation to others. And, of course, should a bar stool make you look good, like a pedestal that puts you in the right light and height.

KG: A striking feature of the stool series is that one of the four legs extends upwards above the seat level. What is this detail all about?
Œ: Confidently stepping out of line, the fourth leg protrudes beyond the seat, subtly responding to our observed gestures and behaviours in the context of a bar stool. At walking stick height, the raised leg becomes a hand-flattering knob – we will certainly use it to hang our bags and pull DOPO closer to us. But we are curious to see what other interactions this extension will encourage.

OTO COLLECTION