The Helix Desk: A bit with a number of personalities

The Helix Desk is an instance of how a typical form in nature, the spiral, could be utilized to furnishings design. There are three options of the desk that I hope will spark your curiosity and maybe your appreciation. First, it has a novel architectural type. Most desk bases are rectilinear. This desk base is within the type of two neighboring helices or spirals. Second, the development processes aren’t apparent. How does one get all these staves to imagine that spiral form? Lastly, this desk format offers for a surprisingly wealthy set of aesthetic choices in use.

Distinctive architectural type

The frequent prototype of a desk is a rectilinear type consisting of three or 4 nook legs supporting a high that’s steadily opaque, concealing a lot of the bottom. The Helix Desk incorporates a glass high, as a way to enhance the visibility of the double helix base. The bottom is definitely composed of two separate models. The models are contiguous with each other at a midline reducing the lengthy aspect of the tabletop in half. There are 8 vertical staves, one on the nook of every base unit, holding up the tabletop. So there are 8 straight, vertical legs! However, the predominant perceptual function of the bottom, from nearly any angle, is its sinuous curvilinearity.

What can be clearly seen is that there aren’t any curved parts within the piece. The curves are created within the viewer’s thoughts’s eye by a collection of straight staves joined to 1 one other on the midpoint. The tip staves in every unit are plumb to the bottom; and there’s a fixed, rising angle from one stave to the following. Whereas the staves are straight, they comply with a discrete however circuitous route that the attention smooths out, bringing the viewer to “see” sinuous curves. Certainly, the concept of utilizing straight sticks to provide spirals is what seduced me into doing this venture.

Building processes

The thought of becoming a member of discrete, linear parts collectively to recommend a curve is just not new. Nonetheless, the concept of utilizing the method as a desk was new to me. And as I picked up the gauntlet a number of challenges turned instantly obvious.

First, there must be sufficient “steps” in order that one’s eye fills within the curve and never so many steps that there’s solely a trivial quantity of curve to fill in. I opted for 10 staves per 90° of arc. [See Footnote 1.] This appears to supply sufficient of a suggestion to allow the attention to do its work with out the design showing too “jumpy.”

The following query a maker should ask is how may the staves be joined collectively. The joinery should resolve two alignment issues: The middle level of every of the staves should be coincident and the angle between them should be 9°. I made a jig that indexes the ends of two staves and holds them on the goal angle with midpoints coincident. The jig permits gluing just one joint at a time. So, the bottom is constructed up of pairs, then the becoming a member of of two pairs to make a quartet, and so forth.

Jig for holding two staves at 9° to 1 one other and with facilities coincident. Pictures by A. Tesser.	Two staves being glued collectively	Gluing two pairs
Gluing the tenth stave to a set of 9	Rising units of staves, mid course of

This course of continues till I’ve two units of 10 staves every. Recall that every base unit consists of two, aspect by aspect, 180° sweeps. The 2 units are clamped subsequent to one another on a “floor” floor with an finish stave in every set being held vertically, like a desk leg. With the set held like this, the second stave is at 99° with respect to the bottom, the third is at 108° .. . and the tenth is at 171°. The following aspect within the collection must be at 180° or completely horizontal. That is the place the “backbone” is available in.

The backbone is twice the size of the staves. It’s glued throughout each units of 10 staves and holds them collectively. Certainly the backbone is the one factor holding the 2 sides collectively. The backbone additionally helps clear up errors. No matter how correct the gluing jig is, no matter error exists is multiplied by 9, the variety of joints holding the ten staves. The jig is just not used to connect the backbone. Simply because the “legs” are clamped in a superbly vertical place the backbone is clamped in a superbly horizontal orientation at a top making the midpoint of the backbone and the midpoint “leg” coincident. [See Footnote 2.]

Gluing the backbone in place completes one half of a unit. To finish one full base unit, two extra units of 10 staves every must be glued to the opposite aspect of the backbone. It’s type of a docking operation. Every little thing should be held exactly in place. The spacers maintain the backbone in place; every set of staves are aligned with the backbone; and every of the 4 finish staves are clamped plumb. Now, I take two or three deep breaths, apply glue and clamps to carry every little thing collectively, after which pray.

There are various, many joints. So, there may be tedium and many alternatives for error. However there may be additionally pleasure (reduction?) in watching the piece develop because the pairs are glued to 1 one other creating sections that come collectively till every base part is full.

Aesthetic choices

Though I had a specific imaginative and prescient in thoughts when designing and constructing this piece, I later found that it’s endowed with intriguing flexibility. Certainly, I now assume that its flexibility is one in every of its best strengths.

The unique orientation (see photographs 1-3) is what I envisioned when constructing the desk. The bottom seems to be a single unit with a steady waveform throughout the horizontal axis. Every of the bases will be turned 90° onto their aspect in order that the legs are not vertical however horizontal. Now the spirals are in an fascinating vertical spiral orientation.

The bases will be configured in a Cross-Spiral Orientation. Within the unique orientation the spines are separate and run from entrance to again by way of the depth of the desk. Within the cross-spiral orientation, every base is twisted 1 / 4 flip in order that the spines are contiguous they usually seem to run by way of the middle from one finish to the opposite. It produces an fascinating collection of scallop shapes.

The 2 bases will also be stacked. Though the peak is impractical for a desk, I discover the sculptural features of the Stacked Orientation engaging.

As steadily famous, the desk truly has two base models. They are often separated and every base unit turns into a low single desk base. Or, they are often separated and used as matched finish desk bases.

Abstract

The helix or spiral is ample in nature however actually much less so in furnishings design. Our supplies usually come to us in a rectilinear format and our instruments thrive on straight traces and proper angles. The Helix Desk offers an instance of using rectilinear supplies to recommend spiral shapes that the viewer’s eye smooths out into sinuous curves. The procedures outlined right here for fabricating a Helix base are generally tedious and awkward and invite enchancment. However, there’s a sure enjoyment of watching every unit “develop.” Maybe the largest shock and the best supply of pleasure was the invention of the a number of personalities the desk might tackle: By turning every base unit 90° (cross-spiral orientation); or by upending every base (vertical spiral orientation); or by stacking the models; or by merely separating the bottom models.

In case you’re focused on exploring these orientations, watch this brief video:

---

Footnotes

1. The selection of 10 staves for every 90° of arc additionally fixes various different design parameters. The curve on every unit sweeps 180° on every of two sides. So, 20 staves are wanted for both sides. And the angle between every stave is 9° . Every of the common staves had been 1” X 1 1/16” (w) X 17.5” (H). Since there are 20 staves, and one backbone (additionally 1 1/16”) in a sweep, every base unit is 21 5/16” lengthy. Since every stave is 17 ½” lengthy the peak of every unit is 17 ½” (when the stave is within the upright place, i.e., the 4 corners). And every unit is 35” deep_recall that there are two aspect sweeps (every 17.5” large) joined within the center by a horizontal backbone, 1” X 1 1/16” X 35” (the size of two horizontal staves).
2. When the staves are positioned on the jig at completely different angles their midpoints transfer in several instructions with respect to the midpoint on the jig. This distinction is accounted for within the placement of the stops on the jig.