Design and Collaboration with &Daughters
&Daughters has always captured our admiration with the vibrant, yet modernist, spaces they craft. Much like their meticulous approach to design, Darcy and Emma were incredibly thoughtful in their collaboration with us, focusing on every last detail. Leveraging our manufacturing expertise and joinery methodology, we joined forces to create something truly thrilling. We're happy to feature their experience in designing the Baker Chair below.
WHAT MOTIVATED THIS COLLABORATION BETWEEN &DAUGHTERS AND L&M?
While working on Small Victory Brentwood, we struggled to find a chair that met the aesthetic and practical needs of the project. In conversations with Joey, the idea came about of us taking this opportunity to design and fabricate a custom chair with L&M. In retrospect, trying to design a commercial grade chair under the time restraints we had was overly ambitious, but that’s one of the things we love about L&M - they’re fearless when it comes to trying new things.
WHAT WAS THE ARCHITECTURAL INSPIRATION BEHIND THE BAKER CHAIR?
The starting point for the design of the chair was to capture the essence of Small Victory’s offer. Coffee and Bread is simple, honest, and elemental. The ambition was to reflect those qualities in a chair that is made of solid wood. It is easy to handle, comfortable, and has expressed joinery that reflects the human hand.
We were particularly inspired by the sophisticated and uncomplicated proportions of the Giraff Stool by Lina Bo Bardi.
These starting points helped us create a form free of embellishment and divorced from trends, achieving timelessness through its quality, simplicity, and versatility.
WHERE DID YOU ENVISION THE BAKER CHAIR BEING USED?
At the time, we were specifically envisioning it being used in Small Victory. However, it became clear quite early on that the Baker Chair would complement many different spaces and styles. Designed for daily living, the chair’s perennial style and utilitarian quality render it versatile for most environments.
We also developed a Baker Bar Stool concurrently with the chair. Unfortunately, the stool never made it to production, but we hope that it might some day.
WHAT PROBLEM WERE YOU MOST KEEN ON SOLVING WITH THIS CHAIR?
In the most direct sense, we were trying to solve the problem of finding a chair that met our aesthetic and performance requirements for Small Victory. However, once we got into the project, it also became about developing our ideal chair. We sought to reflect the aesthetic and formal qualities we often seek in a chair: a low, supportive back, appealing proportions, and simple geometry.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ASPECT OF THE RESULT?
We really appreciate the quiet complexity of the design. At first glance, the chair appears quite simple as each component is expressed and singular. Looking more closely, you might notice that the front legs extend to the top of the seat and the rear legs slip past the seat’s side. This created a challenge as the legs don’t rely on standard point loads to create a strong and durable base. Instead, L&M developed a mortise and tenon joint that locks the legs into the seat horizontally and transfers the weight of someone sitting across the seat and down the legs.
Through working with Joey and Ryan, we’ve gained an appreciation for the structural challenges of designing a chair like this. Most chairs hide connections under the seat, but with this chair, there is nothing but a solid, slender seat.
It’s also really comfortable. We have Baker Chairs in the office and in our homes and for a chair that is quite minimal and rectilinear, it’s actually very comfortable.
