This Office Furniture Makes It Feel Like You’re Working From A Bed
Geoffrey Pascal, a Dutch designer, has created a range of office furniture that resembles the feeling of working from a bed.
The collection is called Grafeoiphobia, or fear of desks, and was developed by the 25-year-old designer as part of his senior thesis for the Design Academy of Eindhoven in the Netherlands. A personal ode to his own work place quirks,Pascal explained to Sleepopolis that the idea was inspired by his inability in traditional office spaces to be productive..
As opposed to traditional chairs and desks, the pieces here are designed to accommodate positions people tend to adopt while working in bed, such as sitting up with a laptop or lying on their stomachs. They feature classic wooden bed slats overlaid by mattress foam and incorporate aspects ofNASA science on neutral body position.
He explained how the furniture he uses naturally causes the body to divide its weight.Users can therefore work longer hours..With names like The Flying Man and The Basic Besk, this is a whole different world of office furniture.
Laying Down, Sitting Up, And Standing
But how healthy is it to work in an environment that feels more like relaxing on a mattress than sitting upright in a nylon mesh chair? To find out, we chatted with Physical Therapist Keith Poorbaugh, owner of Northern Edge Physical Therapy in Wasilla, Alaska.
Poorbaugh says that it doesn’t matter what type of furniture a workspace has, as long as the space allows for a wide range in movement.Variability of positions is key to survival in sedentary work environmentsHe said so. Many options would be a benefit to work environments, as well as encouraging frequent job changes.
Pascal seems to agree with this sentiment and encourages users to move around his furniture throughout the day.It is important to move around and not stay in one position all day..
And though Grafeoiphobia isnt technicallydesigned for sleeping, we couldnt help but wonder if it might have an effect on slumber. After all, dont good sleep habits require us to separate our working and sleeping environments? What happens when the two are combined?
Pascal believes that the key to success is to capture the best aspects of working from home (hello comfort!) while omitting the negative aspects that could come from lying down all day. As he put it to us,My designs do not encourage people to sleep in during work hours. They are designed to change people’s attitudes about the office..
