This sofa is the grand sum of our experience in sofa making. It also proposes a new way of
designing a sofa. As the name Horizontal sofa shows, it is a realization of an airy floating-like image
with horizontal expansion. One novelty of this sofa is the brass legs and rungs that connect the legs.
The legs and rungs are manufactured in a different way. The legs are made by lost-wax casting,
and the rungs are made by extrusion. The lost-wax casting method is often used for making finely
decorated Buddhist ritual articles, while extrusion is for making longer objects with precision, such
as window sashes. Only one company in Kyoto produces extruded brass products in Japan. Only
a few companies use the lost-wax casting method in Japan, including one in Takaoka City, Toyama
Prefecture. By combining these brass production methods, the base was made with a fusion of
beautiful organic curved lines and surfaces. Dignity and gorgeousness are formed by the shiny
expression of brass legs that are part of the base, resulting in a lightness as if the entire sofa were
levitated. An unconstrained horizontal expanse is formed by the thin seat and the height of the
arms, which are connected to both sides. In order to provide softness and adequate resilience to the
seat, we used small pocket coil parts (usually used for beds) for the first time. S-springs are used
in the foundation to support the pocket coils for enhancing the springiness of the sofa. A urethane
sheet is put on the pocket coils, then it is covered with feather bags to create a fine texture and soft
puffiness when sat upon. Slight unevenness of the feathers is eliminated by covering them with a
resin cotton sheet, which is ultimately covered with leather or fabric. The core of the entire sofa is
a wooden frame structure. The strength and weight of the sofa are determined by the structure for
strengthening the wooden frame, and the structural elements for properly saving weight. These
multiple elements are comprehensively combined to create the product.
Due to the horizontally expanding design of the Horizontal sofa, the presence of arms does not block
a space. Since the arms are harder than the seat, users may rest a tray or a book, or even sit on
them.
Since the angled backrest is well cushioned and is relatively high, the sofa has enough height and
softness for sufficiently supporting one’s back when sitting back. Our previous sofas mostly had a
low backrest, because we focused too much on the proportions. However, the backrest height of
this sofa was set so that it does not interfere with the overall horizontal expansion, while placing a
practical importance on comfort.