First, some context:

English Georgian Writing Chair

As Georgian styles became more luxurious and comfort and utility became more
important, a new variety of specialized chairs developed. A few of these intended for use in libraries were designed specifically for reading and writing (Boger 274). The reading and writing chair dated 1720 (Boger 279, see Fig. 1), or straddle chair (Hinckley 169, see Fig. 2), is a particularly innovative example. Boger notes that it was typically covered in leather. The occupant sits backward in the chair, straddling the narrow back of the chair, resting their arms on the padded supports of the flat-topped, semi-circular chair rail (278). It is made out of Mahogany, and has an adjustable wooden tablet to rest a book for reading or piece of paper for writing. It also has hinged trays under the arms and a drawer in the seat rail for storage (279). It has some similarity to other writing furniture of the time such as the roundabout chair (Boger 279), or even the low-back Windsor chair which was is not specifically meant for writing but has a chair rail with a similar shape (Gloag 164-165).

The reading and writing chair is very interesting because it’s adaptable and can be used
in several different ways. One could sit in it like a normal chair, with the tablet folded down out of sight and the swivel trays tucked away under the arms. Looking at it like this, it doesn’t seem too unusual in comparison to a typical chair, and you might not even know it has another specialized function. Sitting in this chair facing forward as you would normally sit in a chair, the curved armrests could presumably support the elbow to help you hold up a book you’re reading. The symmetrical design would allow you to switch sides and change how you’re leaning when it gets uncomfortable after a while.

You can also sit in the chair backwards to make use of the fold-up tablet on the back of
the chair. The chair back tapers down where it connects to the seat, and the form of the seat is rounded so that it also narrows where it connects to the back. This makes it easier to straddle the chair and sit backwards in it so you don’t have to spread your legs as far apart. The wooden (mahogany) legs form a trapezoidal shape: narrower at the back following the narrow tapering of the seat back, and wider at the front, giving it stability. The simple turned stretchers come together in a rectangle under the seat with additional arms reaching out from each corner of the rectangle to a leg. The front two are curved to reach outward to the wider-spaced legs, while the back two go straight back to the narrowly-spaced back legs. The legs are simple and smooth. One version has a club foot with narrower connections to the seat, one version has a cabriole leg with a club foot and a wider flaring connection to the seat. Both have small casters for mobility.

The arm rests, back, and seat are all fully upholstered and covered with leather,
attached at the bottom of the arm rests and bottom of the seat with upholstery nails. The
leather even covers the front of the drawer and the swiveling trays on the arm rests.

Historically, one can imagine this is a very masculine chair for a few reasons. Firstly, this
is intended to go in a library. Libraries are traditionally male-dominated spaces, and academia and access to knowledge have been heavily guarded by men so that women were intentionally kept out. This is also the beginning of the period in time when women became primarily responsible for furnishing of the home, leading to a cultural division between the femininity of “home decor” and the perceived need for the masculinity of the library or study, i.e. “man cave.” As such, the use of leather as an upholstery material in libraries has no doubt contributed to its cultural association with masculinity in general. Secondly, the posture required to use the chair for writing (sitting backward) is only possible while wearing pants, also something vehemently guarded by men, leaving women to stumble around in heavy skirts. It would not be easy for women to sit in this chair while wearing the enormous skirts and petticoats supported by literal baskets tied to the hips which were the fashion in 1720.

Gender Non-Conforming Writing Chair

The transformation of this chair began with the question: how do I take this masculine
chair and make it more balanced and accessible to people of all genders? I began with altering the form to allow someone wearing any kind of clothing to use the chair. Previously, only people wearing pants could comfortably sit backwards and straddle the seat as it was intended to be used. The solution was to cantilever the arm rest and writing surface so that a person can slide in sideways instead.

Another symbol of masculinity on the original chair was the materials used: mahogany,
leather, and big upholstery nails. The solution was to soften these features, not necessarily to reverse them and make them feminine, but something more in-between.

I used turquoise upholstery fabric and birch plywood with painted magenta edges,
alluding to the combination of masculine and feminine (blue and pink). Instead of upholstery nails I used magenta piping to finish the edge. The form of the arm rests, seat, and front legs are close to the original, but adapted for construction with bent plywood. The original cabriole/club foot is replaced with a flared plywood leg. The seat is rounded but has some straight angular parts where it connects to the plywood legs.

In addition, some parts of the chair have been updated with more contemporary
materials. Instead of a drawer, a wire mesh basket hangs under the seat for paper storage, and the swivel compartments under the arm rests are exposed aluminum instead of wood concealed by a layer of leather.