Vivian Beer (American, born 1977). <em>"Current" Chair</em>, designed 2004, manufactured 2008. Formed and fabricated steel and automotive paint, 32 1/8 x 16 x 22 in. (81.6 x 40.6 x 55.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. J. Fuller Feder, Marcus S. Friedlander, and Mrs. Clifford D. Mallory in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Rogers Mallory, by exchange, 2012.54. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Image courtesy of Vivian Beer Studio Works, CUR.2012.54_artist_photo.jpg)

Why is this image so small?

This image is presented as a "thumbnail" because it is protected by copyright. The Brooklyn Museum respects the rights of artists who retain the copyright to their work.

Vivian Beer (American, born 1977). "Current" Chair, designed 2004, manufactured 2008. Formed and fabricated steel and automotive paint, 32 1/8 x 16 x 22 in. (81.6 x 40.6 x 55.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. J. Fuller Feder, Marcus S. Friedlander, and Mrs. Clifford D. Mallory in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Rogers Mallory, by exchange, 2012.54. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Image courtesy of Vivian Beer Studio Works, CUR.2012.54_artist_photo.jpg)

Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Tell me more.

This chair, designed by Vivian Beer, looks like it has been cut from a single piece of metal but really it has been meticulously welded using many of the same tools as an auto body shop would have to shape a car's fender. She uses auto body paint, and even shares a studio space with an antique auto restorer.

If I can't sit in a chair, is it still a chair? It can't fulfill its purpose.

Does fulfilling its purpose really change the definition of a thing? If a cup in your cupboard is not filled with liquid is it still a cup? Or does it only become a cup when it is being used?

The chair is meant to be used. If it isn't, it isn't a chair. I will always use my cup, even if it's not filled at the moment.If it's here, nobody can sit in it. I can't use the chair.

Well, the chair wasn't here from the time it was made; we acquired it. So this could be just viewed as an extended period of disuse. If it's not a chair, then what is it?

It's a statue, a statue of a chair.

Very interesting perspective. I wonder if you were to visit our period rooms if you describe those as statues as well? What about bowls, vases, and other utilitarian objects excavated in antiquity that are on display. Have they become statues as well?

I suppose. The vases and bowls are no more than sculptures if nobody can use them. The art on them is pretty, but that is not why they were made. A plate holds food, it's not supposed to be admired in a museum.

That's a new way to look at our collection that I haven't heard before. I don't necessarily agree that a thing has to be used, or has to have the possibility of being used, to be categorized as a functional object. That it was created for that purpose, or as once used for that purpose is enough for me.

It might not fulfill its original purpose, but instead it's given a new one.

Well that someone created a plate using a new or well executed technique or has imagery that is masterfully rendered is I think cause for display in a museum context and an opportunity for education about a certain time, style, or technique.

Even in their original contexts, some of these objects were admired for their aesthetic qualities as well as fulfilling their functional purpose. The two are not necessarily mutually exclusive. A thing can be designed to be looked at, contemplated, and admired as well as used.

Can I point you to the "Yuan Wine Jar with Fish and Aquatic Plants"? It is on display near the blue and white ceramics in Infinite Blue and intended to be both used AND admired.

Such a bizarre shape for a chair...

Did you notice the name of this chair? It's called "Current," because its rippling lines suggest water currents or electrical currents. Vivian Beer, the designer, is based in New England and she works mostly in metals, using her materials in very creative ways.She combines old and new methods: she uses computer design programs to plan her designs, but she does the actual welding with traditional metalworking techniques. She actual shares a workspace with an antique automobile restorer, because they use some of the same equipment to shape and weld metal!

Tell me more about this chair, please.

This chair is amazing. It looks like it is all made from one piece of metal but Vivian Beer, the designer, actually welded together various pieces using traditional blacksmithing techniques. The result is near seamless. Beer is known for creative use of materials, explorations of color, and attention to workmanship that really sets her apart from others in the field.

Do we know if this is one piece of metal or many?

It is meant to look like it is cut from a single piece of metal, but it has actually been fabricated and meticulously welded together using traditional blacksmithing techniques!

Okay...how about this cool chair. We think the individual strips were bent and then fused at the ends, not bent out of one piece. How was it made?

You're right! It's meant to looks as if it was wrought from a single sheet, but it is indeed made of sheets of steel that have been welded together and then coated with automotive paint.

Can I know more about this artist?

Sure! Beer is a furniture designer and maker based in New England. She is known for her creative use of industrial materials and attention to detail.

Her work is multilayered, steeped in design references from pop culture, fashion, car culture and industrial design. She has a BA in sculpture from the Maine College of Art and an MFA in metal smithing from Cranbrook Academy of Art.

Thank you!

It looks amazing, and really like it is all in one piece! Do you know where the joints are?

I would say she's been successful then! The joints are at the flat areas at the top of the back and at the front foot.

Thanks!

Is the Current Chair by Vivian Beer in production? Can this chair be bought somewhere?

At the moment, her website only lists a 1/6th scale model for sale.

Here's the link: http://www.vivianbeer.com/store/

"Current" Chair

Decorative Arts and Design

On View: Luce Visible Storage and Study Center, 5th Floor

The dynamic, curvilinear design of the “Current” Chair seems to defy the strength and hardness of the steel from which it is made. Historically, few women have worked in metal other than to fashion jewelry, and fewer still have made metal furniture. About her innovative design Beer remarked: “I wanted this chair to seem as if it had been cut and crushed out of a single sheet of metal. At the same time I wanted it to feel as fast and clean as water in its silhouette…. The Balance and the trickery are important.” The chair’s title suggests that the artist’s choice of blue alludes to swiftly moving water.

DESIGNER Vivian Beer, American, born 1977

MAKER Vivian Beer Studio Works

MEDIUM Formed and fabricated steel and automotive paint

DATES designed 2004, manufactured 2008

DIMENSIONS 32 1/8 x 16 x 22 in. (81.6 x 40.6 x 55.9 cm) (show scale)

MARKINGS No marks found (chair too heavy to move).

COLLECTIONS Decorative Arts and Design

ACCESSION NUMBER 2012.54

CREDIT LINE Gift of Mrs. J. Fuller Feder, Marcus S. Friedlander, and Mrs. Clifford D. Mallory in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Rogers Mallory, by exchange

EXHIBITIONS

Infinite Blue

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Luce Visible Storage and Study Center, 5th Floor

CAPTION Vivian Beer (American, born 1977). "Current" Chair, designed 2004, manufactured 2008. Formed and fabricated steel and automotive paint, 32 1/8 x 16 x 22 in. (81.6 x 40.6 x 55.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mrs. J. Fuller Feder, Marcus S. Friedlander, and Mrs. Clifford D. Mallory in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Rogers Mallory, by exchange, 2012.54. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Image courtesy of Vivian Beer Studio Works, CUR.2012.54_artist_photo.jpg)

IMAGE overall, CUR.2012.54_artist_photo.jpg. Image courtesy of Vivian Beer Studio Works

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT © artist or artist's estate

Copyright for this work may be controlled by the artist, the artist's estate, or other rights holders. A more detailed analysis of its rights history may, however, place it in the public domain. The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.