Select items from these studios were showcased in New York at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) and at the Furniture Fair in Milan, Italy.

Context and Point of Origin

Dupont approached RISD with interest in a single semester studio collaboration to explore furniture applications for their Corian® material. This partnership grew to multiple semesters and resulted in a broad range of material applications.

Dupont supplied an overview of the material. Corian® has one quality above all others that is appealing to the designer; it is essentially a pre-finished material. The material is weather resistant and color fast and hence it is well suited for exterior applications. In most outside applications, its weight is an asset. The material has a neutral sound quality, which makes it ideal for sound-related uses such as guitar bodies and electronic equipment enclosures. Corian® is a very stable material subject to minimal atmospheric dimensional variations. The material is solid, dense, and workable. Corian® is easily and invisibly seamed together affording a wide range of thicknesses and surface areas. The material is easily cut, machined, sanded and finished.

Process

The design process, materials explorations inclusive, is a series of experiments and divergent thinking which, more often than not, result in a new question or questions as well as a series of possible answers. For our working and evolving definition of the design process click here.

As this materials exploration was primarily in the department of furniture, the process was largely hands-on.

Initial Struggles

As a pre-finished material, Corian® is only available in set thicknesses with the broadest color availability at the ½ inch thickness. This led to experiments in joining, thickness planning, and various other ‘jury-rigging’ surface planning methods. A fair amount of energy went into various methods of casting the material. As the material is primarily available in solid form, students were left to casting the seam kits, as the joint material is essentially the same as the solid material. These struggles and related experiments led to a refocus on the original material in its original, readily available form. Dupont came to RISD seeking new applications for the material they currently produce in the form they currently produce it: sheets. The balance of the material exploration focused on this specific pursuit, which lead to some notable observations.

Qualities of the Material: Tactility, Translucency, Thermoformability

Tactility

One of the most enticing qualities of Corian® is tactility. The material is smooth and dense inviting touch. The cool, dense silky surface of Corian® is seductive. Corian® responds well to traditional woodworking tools and machinery such as the lathe, router, and table saw. It is easier to shape with abrasive tools rather than cutting tools. Students experimented with handheld objects that invited if not required touch such as small clocks, lamps, and even door hardware.

Corian® cuts readily with carbide blades and bits and is easily shaped with files, rasps, or abrasive tools either hand or power driven. The finished material can be roughly textured or sanded and polished to a highly reflective surface. Therefore, one can achieve a surface from soft to sleek and smooth. Like wood, the methods to achieving the tactile qualities are primarily subtractive. Because the material is homogenous with consistent color throughout and is invisibly patchable, it is much more forgiving than wood and designers are very free to experiment with surface and texture. Again, as Corian® is homogenous, unlike wood, it does not have grain direction or changes in density; it is easily and predictably shaped and controlled. Corian® is warmer to the touch than stone or metal, and has a sensuous quality that withstands repeated handling without being compromised.

Translucency

Another intriguing quality of Corian® is its translucency. The degree of light emitted changes by the thickness and color of the material. Light is easily manipulated through routing or carving the back surfaces of the material to reduce thicknesses and increase the illumination. The atmospheric effects of the illuminated objects can be quite pleasing. Many of the concepts and forms developed were showcased at the ICFF in New York and the Furniture Fair in Milan, Italy.

Corian® is a pure acrylic polymer, which is clear, to which Aluminum Tri-Hydrate (mineral) and natural pigments are added. Color and opacity vary based on the amount of pigment added in the original manufacturing. As manufactured, the ¼ inch thick white sheet is the most naturally translucent. As the material gets darker and thicker it becomes less translucent. Any color thickness can be opaque. We found it possible to achieve varying levels of translucency by milling Corian® to thinner thicknesses with routers, sanding etc. This led to endless possibilities for light patterns, effects, or gradations.

Therformability

The most exciting quality of Corian® is its ability to be bent and formed into compound shapes with a variety of simple heating techniques. The material is fully malleable at a core temperature of 300 degrees. Students experimented with strips of the material forming shapes by gloved hands. Also popular were concepts for single piece chairs, benches, tables, and magazine racks. The material is very satisfying in its ability to offer a finished looking piece at the quick prototyping level.

Corian® is a thermoplastic, which means it becomes plastic or formable when heated to a specific temperature, approximately 300 degrees Fahrenheit. It returns to a rigid form, holding whatever shape when it cools below 180 degrees Fahrenheit. We found various wood form making and bending techniques readily transferable. We utilized a vacuum form press outfitted with a special heat tolerant membrane to pull the heated Corian® sheet tight to the mold until it cooled. We also used a two-part form in which we sandwiched the heated Corian® sheets in between two nesting molds. For convex curves, we also used simple, flexible metal straps as used in steam bending, to trap the heated material against a form. Some of the most interesting work came from free forming which involved holding the heated material by gloved hand until it cooled and set.

Drawbacks

Corian® is an acrylic based material combined with other minerals and pigments. While it is environmentally safe, the dust produced when machining the material is a nuisance with an unpleasant odor. The material is not terribly forgiving for extended heat bends as it becomes brittle with repeated heating, forming, and cooling.

Technical Observations

Although Corian® is workable with common woodworking tools, it is important to use stronger cutting tools: carbide blades, bits, and saws. Corian® can be heat formed from a traditional oven but such common appliances limit the size and scale of the prototypes produced. RISD secured a retired pizza oven to accommodate larger scale projects.

Conclusion-

Dupont initially requested the study to answer their question: “Does Dupont Corian® work for furniture?” and “Will artists and designers want to work with the material?” The answers to both questions are absolutely. Once the students experimented with the Corian, they quickly began to think of it as a material rather than simply a surface treatment. With a focus on tactility, translucency, and thermoformability students found multiple applications in both furniture and consumer products.