‘I Didn’t Want a Museum Piece‘
Helen Berresford on her Eames Lounge Chair
Helen Berresford is an architect and interior designer who leads ID:SR Sheppard Robson. Through her work with some of the UK’s most significant organisations – including brands like BBC, BT and Deloitte – Helen has championed ‘activity-driven design’. This approach places people – and the specific actions supporting their work – at the heart of the design process. She is known for using creativity to resolve organisational challenges, translating the visions of her (often long-standing) clients into uplifting and purposeful spaces.
Here, Helen talks to us about her Vitra Eames Lounge Chair, explaining its importance to her and her family, as well as what it says about the architecture industry.
Can you tell us more about the Eames Lounge Chair you’re sitting on, Helen?
Well, this is a very special chair; it’s more like a family member. My father bought it in the 1960s, and growing up, this symbol of modern design had a very prominent position in my family house, which he designed for us. It was a significant purchase for my father, and having such a radically modern chair in the home was extremely unusual. Growing up, it was hard to imagine how iconic the chair would become or how it would go on to be charged with so much emotion for our family.
The chair has been well-used, and the leather had become tattered over the generations. We have just finished working with Vitra to replace the cushions and rosewood shell, bringing the chair back to life.
Well, this is a very special chair; it’s more like a family member. My father bought it in the 1960s, and growing up, this symbol of modern design had a very prominent position in my family house, which he designed for us. It was a significant purchase for my father, and having such a radically modern chair in the home was extremely unusual. Growing up, it was hard to imagine how iconic the chair would become or how it would go on to be charged with so much emotion for our family.
The chair has been well-used, and the leather had become tattered over the generations. We have just finished working with Vitra to replace the cushions and rosewood shell, bringing the chair back to life.
Given those emotional ties, was it a hard decision to repair it?
We took a long time to decide what to do. We wanted to recreate the original design to ensure it stayed a functional part of family life. I didn’t want a museum piece; I wanted to write the next chapter in the chair’s story. There was something very satisfying about Vitra still making the chair pretty much to the same specifications, and working with experts who took an almost scholarly approach to refurbish the chair was very reassuring. The Vitra team knew every bolt, casting and stitch that underpinned the authenticity of the design; the continuity of craftsmanship and love for the chair was clear to see.
We took a long time to decide what to do. We wanted to recreate the original design to ensure it stayed a functional part of family life. I didn’t want a museum piece; I wanted to write the next chapter in the chair’s story. There was something very satisfying about Vitra still making the chair pretty much to the same specifications, and working with experts who took an almost scholarly approach to refurbish the chair was very reassuring. The Vitra team knew every bolt, casting and stitch that underpinned the authenticity of the design; the continuity of craftsmanship and love for the chair was clear to see.
And what does this chair’s story tell us about the architecture industry?
Well, it’s interesting to reflect on when this chair was designed and where society is now. The chair was designed in a time of scarcity and a drive for efficiency. Given our climate crisis, I think it’s time to return to championing this creativity of resourcefulness and release the grip that a pervasive throwaway culture has on our industry and way of life.
We are now seeing reuse go far beyond the revival of buildings, with our industry gearing up to the more granular reuse and upcycling of office components to meet increasingly ambitious sustainability targets. Furniture is a key part of this, and increasingly, we are refurbishing long-lasting high-quality pieces and giving them another lease on life, a lot like this Eames Lounge Chair.
Well, it’s interesting to reflect on when this chair was designed and where society is now. The chair was designed in a time of scarcity and a drive for efficiency. Given our climate crisis, I think it’s time to return to championing this creativity of resourcefulness and release the grip that a pervasive throwaway culture has on our industry and way of life.
We are now seeing reuse go far beyond the revival of buildings, with our industry gearing up to the more granular reuse and upcycling of office components to meet increasingly ambitious sustainability targets. Furniture is a key part of this, and increasingly, we are refurbishing long-lasting high-quality pieces and giving them another lease on life, a lot like this Eames Lounge Chair.
‘We need to champion the creativity of resourcefulness.’
Helen Berresford
Is our architecture and design industry moving fast enough?
There has been considerable change. Just a few years ago, numerous products would have swiftly ended up in landfills during office redesigns and relocations with little conversation about reuse. Now, there’s an increasingly active industry catering to the interest in repair and breaking down some of the barriers to upcycling. However, this needs to grow rapidly if we are going to make the reuse of component parts the default, not the exception.
The repair of the chair I am sitting on brings home the fact that reuse – which is not without its challenges – can be rewarding and an essential part of the life of a design object. With care and knowledge, the process can simultaneously unlock the practical and the emotional.
There has been considerable change. Just a few years ago, numerous products would have swiftly ended up in landfills during office redesigns and relocations with little conversation about reuse. Now, there’s an increasingly active industry catering to the interest in repair and breaking down some of the barriers to upcycling. However, this needs to grow rapidly if we are going to make the reuse of component parts the default, not the exception.
The repair of the chair I am sitting on brings home the fact that reuse – which is not without its challenges – can be rewarding and an essential part of the life of a design object. With care and knowledge, the process can simultaneously unlock the practical and the emotional.
Publication date: 20.08.2025
Images: © Abigail Evans
