pedro sottomayor's maria and manel chairs for downtown lisbon streets

designed by pedro sottomayor, the chairs ‘maria’ and ‘manel’ were developed as a part of the new concept for downtown lisbon, which enhances the outdoor terraces and accentuates the charm of the streets. the objective was to give continuity by using a clean design language on the streets instead of drowning in a chaotic jumble of materials and colors.

chalky white aluminum

lisbon is known for its bustling and animated street life. the huge number of cafés and restaurants, sharing the narrow streets, all trying to grab attention, results in a visual chaos that endangered the unique charm of the potruguese capital. thus, the portuguese government has decided to make a competition for developing a unique and uniting design concept of the city.

matt colors — chalky white, dark red, light blue and black

the result of sottomayor’s winner work is the development of a design concept that regulates the layout and equipment of lisbon´s terraces by reflecting the city´s history and tradition. the overall design is simple and calm just as the seven color scheme with two main colors, chalky white and black, inspired by traditional portuguese sidewalk paving.

maria and manel are the modern interpretation of a classic portuguese chair, typically found on the esplanadas — the streets. to maintain lisbon´s traditional appearance and thereby its unique atmosphere, the design was adapted but not redone. it aims to distinguish the classic shapes while adding modern lines and making the chair much handier and user-friendly. manufactured with fewer parts, their production as well as their look is much simpler than the original model.

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: maria erman | designboom