A study of dramatic changes in form that occur in a pelican’s bill became the basis for a design to create a simple, flexible chair.  The chair, when unoccupied, appears as a plane, inclined and set against a wall or screen. Experience and realization of the full flex of the chair is only apparent when the act of sitting occurs.

The “pelican chair” consists of a simple bent steel tube frame and a flexible elastic backing, with lines of compressive support to allow for the perfect stretch. The chair, mounted to the steel screen on the south balcony of the college, now serves as a functioning piece of furniture for fellow students’ everyday use.