DESIGN

Sofia Elias Dunks Café Seating in Candy-Colored Paint

The Mexican designer hand-makes her whimsical new seating by applying sumptuous layers of resin and pigments to traditional chairs.

Sometimes, a fresh coat of paint is all a design needs—and sometimes that fresh coat of paint becomes a design all its own. That’s certainly the case with the new Party of Three chairs designed by Mexican artist Sofia Elias. Unveiled in Labor/Pamela Weissenberg Gallery’s booth at Art Basel Miami Beach, the collection appears to dunk traditional café seating in vats of candy-colored paint—not even a stretch given how Elias produces each by hand, making the form from metal and applying sumptuous layers of resin and pigments in violet, red, and bright blue hues. A sealant of UV epoxy ensures the chairs stay as fresh as they look, no drop cloth required.

(Images courtesy of Sofia Elias.)

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