Even though Sitzbock has established itself as a vital piece of furniture in many office environments, this eye-catcher's unusual design never gets boring. This is hardly surprising because it's totally different from any furniture you might otherwise expect in offices. But if there were no limit to creativity, what else could you turn it into? Designfunktion and Wilkhahn launched a competition called Reimagining Sitzbock's Design and invited architects to think outside the box where Sitzbock's concerned.

The results were inspiring and impressive. And it was a good enough reason to exhibit the best work during the award ceremony and present the prize of a trip for five people. The judges, Sitzbock’s designer Sven Rudolph of Rudolph Schelling Webermann, Prof. Fritz Frenkler from the Technical University of Munich, and Michael Hofstetter, artist and deputy photography professor at the Academy for Art and Design in Munich, awarded first prize to the design submitted by Schmöller Architekten.

1st prize: Sitzbock Swing (the rocking horse): Schmöller Architekten, 2nd prize: Cloud: MKNG Architektur GmbH, 3rd prize: Pinata: IAM interior architects munich

They took the original Sitzbock back to its roots by turning into a rocking horse. But the other work was also exceptional. Sitzbock was encountered with a green add-on or as a cloud or an office accessory to improve indoor climates in the case of Wesenfeld Höfer Architekten.

Text & Photos: Wilkhahn