Almora

“The magic and mystery of Almora is that the screws are invisible!” say the design duo Doshi Levien. The materials used to make the armchair seem to be fit together like the components of a piece of jewellery. There is actually a hidden mechanical joint that connects the two conical shells, one for the seat and one for the back, and a third element - the headrest that inserts into the back, but looks like it is slightly detached.

Almora is named after the Indian region that offers a breath-taking view of the Himalayas and, quoting its designers, it longs to be “a haven from the world, a place for contemplation and reading from where one can admire magnificent snow-capped peaks. As protective as a second skin, enveloping like a soft blanket”.  It is a sensual play on shapes and a combination of materials chosen because their characteristics evoke sensations of comfort: “when you touch this object, you must be immediately at ease, it must give the idea that it embraces you”, the same sort of design feeling that the two designers had in their lives and professional decisions. They have become quite famous in the past decade for their original approach, which forms a synthesis of technology and artisan craftsmanship, artistic vision and cultural plurality.