Chairs with armrests for the elderly
"Lotte" is a chair with armrests created by designer Sarah Hossli for her Master's degree at ECAL, Lausanne – in cooperation with the Neubad multigenerational house in Basel and Girsberger Customized Furniture. Her aim was to enable everyone, irrespective of their age and abilities, to get up and sit down without assistance. Owing to age-related impairments, this can be a great challenge for many older people in particular who then enjoy less freedom in their everyday lives.
Awards:
German Design Award 2023: Winner Furniture
Iconic Awards 2023, Innovative Interior: Best of best, Furniture
James Dyson Award 2023, National Runner Up
Dezeen Awards 2022: Public Vote Winner
Dezeen Awards 2022: Seating design of the year
Design Preis Schweiz 2021: Winner Furniture
Design
Sarah Hossli / ECAL, Luzern
Products
Chairs
Photos
Sarah Hossli, Manuel Kälin, Severin Stark, Girsberger
Illustrations
Amy Wolfe
The extended armrests give users the confidence to put their weight on their feet and provide intuitive support for them when shifting their weight.
The design was developed on the basis of experiences gained while visiting various residential care groups, from interviews and prototype tests with residents, as well as from input by experts from the medical and care professions.
Girsberger supported Sarah Hossli with the development of the project and manufactured the prototypes. To contribute to the circular economy, we designed upholstery that can be easily removed and exchanged if necessary. Load and tipping tests were carried out in our own testing laboratory.