Declaration of originality

I declare that this document and the work described are my own work except where otherwise stated.

Padraig Doyle

____________________________________________________________

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the following people for their part in helping me: Dr. Patrick Tobin, GMIT, for his ready guidance. John Keary, GMIT, for his advice on test equipment. Siobhan Piercy, GMIT for her time and advice on printing Brian Crudden, A1 Signs, Galway for his advice on printing Peter Nee, GMIT for the spraying Jarlath King, GMIT for his help in the workshop Jeremy Madden for general advice Aisling Hurley, Teamwoodcraft for her advice and time and participation on panel Liam Dileen, EZ Living for his advice and time and participation on panel Charles OToole, Charles Furniture, for his advice and time and participation on panel John Jenkins, for his advice and time and participation on panel Colin Farmer, Unthink Graphic Design for his advice and time and participation on panel Conor Nolan, Conor and David Graphic Design for his advice and time and participation on panel everyone in FDM for being in FDM and Mary for her support.

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Summary
In recent years, an increase was perceived in graphics on many interior decorative accessories from kitchen ware to wallpaper. It was noticed that this did not apply to cabinetry, tables and the other hard faces of furniture but the reason was unclear. In pursuit of an explanation and the hope of identification of a niche in the furniture market, this research was undertaken.

Such research needs a context and Chapter 1 combs the history of furniture for evidence of graphics pictorial or patterned examining the techniques employed, the types of furniture and the surfaces to which they are applied and the meaning behind their use. Three key observations are made i) Much historical graphical ornament serves a purpose other than decoration, ii) contemporary interiors do not necessarily honour the meaning behind a historical style and iii) historical techniques are used in situations appropriate to their individual properties and this should hold true for modern techniques.

Historical profiling of graphic furniture leads onto analysis of contemporary use. Styles of furniture vary between geographies so Chapter 2 uses several approaches to assess whether a market exists for graphical furniture and where it might be. Forgetting graphics for a moment: the UK is identified as a huge market, to a great extent untapped by Irish furniture manufacturers while other large European countries are very accessible but have been completely ignored. When graphic furniture was assessed in these markets (Ireland and the UK in particular) practically none was found. The suggestion is made that graphic furniture may not be widely appreciated. The suggestion is also made that the scarcity might present niche market opportunities.

The need for expert input is acknowledged in Chapter 3 when a panel of experts from varied and relevant backgrounds discuss the extent to which graphical furniture exists and the driving factors behind this. They consider potential markets and the suitable use of graphics. A formal technique is used to moderate the group discussion and for each question, a surprisingly strong consensus emerges: i) Solid furniture endures and so must be designed transcend fashion trends, otherwise its lifetime might be limited, and ii) Graphics must have a meaning other than pure decoration (this resonates with one of the findings from chapter 1).

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Techniques of applying graphics to all products have moved with technology. The techniques identified in Chapter 1 are beautiful and enduring and still relevant today Chapter 4 presents modern alternatives and assessed them for cost and quality.

Chapter 5 takes one such technique that could be employed by any furniture designer. The quality and suitability are assessed through experiment and testing. The technique performs better than expected, is very accessible and (assuming the durability can be proved beyond doubt) requires no special knowledge, skill or research. The chapter ends by informing the furniture maker how to employ the technique.

While some of the findings do not support the use of graphics on furniture, the author is left with the conclusion that markets exist. The use of graphics is seen as a means for a customer to express individuality. Furniture of this nature can command a higher price, but requires corresponding quality and design input. To quote Liam Dileen, people buy what they see. Graphics are eye catching so, with appropriate placement of an attractive product with an enduring graphic, this will sell.

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Table of contents
DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ........................................................................................................................I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................................................................II SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................................................III TABLE OF CONTENTS....................................................................................................................................... V TABLE OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................................ VII GLOSSARY ........................................................................................................................................................ 9 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................. 10 BACKGROUND ...................................................................................................................................................... 10 PURPOSE............................................................................................................................................................. 10 OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................................................................................... 10 SCOPE ................................................................................................................................................................ 10 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY...................................................................................................................................... 11 1 HISTORY OF GRAPHICALLY ENHANCED FURNITURE .............................................................................. 13 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 2 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 13 TH BEFORE THE 20 CENTURY ........................................................................................................................... 13 TH 20 CENTURY ............................................................................................................................................ 22 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................................. 25

CONTEMPORARY TRENDS..................................................................................................................... 28 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 28 TRENDS IN WHICH MARKET? ........................................................................................................................ 28 CONTEMPORARY USE OF GRAPHICS IN INTERIORS AND FURNITURE ......................................................................... 30 DESIGN BLOGS............................................................................................................................................ 35 IRISH AND UK FURNITURE RETAILERS .............................................................................................................. 35 THE BILLY ANOMALY ................................................................................................................................ 36 EUROPEAN TRENDS ..................................................................................................................................... 38 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................................. 40

INDUSTRY EXPERTS............................................................................................................................... 43 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 43 METHOD ................................................................................................................................................... 43 RESULTS .................................................................................................................................................... 45 ANALYSIS OF RESULTS .................................................................................................................................. 47 OTHER APPLICATIONS .................................................................................................................................. 50 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................................. 50

GRAPHIC APPLICATION TECHNIQUES .................................................................................................... 52 4.1 4.2 4.3 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 52 TECHNIQUES .............................................................................................................................................. 52 CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................................. 58

INVESTIGATION OF DIRECT INKJET TECHNIQUE .................................................................................... 60 5.1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................... 60 5.2 LIGHT FASTNESS .......................................................................................................................................... 61 5.2.1 How to perform a Light fastness test ............................................................................................ 62 5.3 RESULTS AND OBSERVATIONS ......................................................................................................................... 70

5.3.1 Preliminary observations: ............................................................................................................. 70 5.3.2 Analysis of Fading ......................................................................................................................... 70 5.3.3 Analysis of other Effects ................................................................................................................ 72 5.4 OTHER PROPERTIES ...................................................................................................................................... 73 5.5 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................................... 74 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................................................. 77 RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................................................. 77 WORKS CITED ................................................................................................................................................ 78 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................................................... 81 APPENDICES................................................................................................................................................... 84 APPENDIX (I). LOG OF DAILY CHECKS OF TEST PROGRESS .............................................................................................. 84 APPENDIX (II). VISUAL GRADING OF SAMPLES. ........................................................................................................... 85 APPENDIX (III). SAFETY STATEMENT FOR UV TESTING. ................................................................................................. 89 Risk of Fire ................................................................................................................................................... 89 Tipping......................................................................................................................................................... 89 UV light........................................................................................................................................................ 89 Electric shock ............................................................................................................................................... 89 Other relevant considerations: .................................................................................................................... 90 APPENDIX (IV): TREND PREDICTIONS OF URSULA GEISMANN ......................................................................................... 93 APPENDIX (V) ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT FURNITURE RETAIL MARKET FOR GRAPHICS ON FURNITURE: .................................... 95 APPENDIX (VI) TRANSCRIPT OF DISCUSSION WITH INDUSTRY EXPERTS. ........................................................................... 103 Question 1 ................................................................................................................................................. 103 Question 2 ................................................................................................................................................. 107

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Table of figures
FIGURE 1-1 ECCLESIASTICAL THRONE WITH BACK OVERLAID WITH FAIENCE, GLASS, SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES AND PANELS OF EBONY AND IVORY (HAYWARD, 1969 P. FRONTICEPIECE) .................................................................................................. 14 FIGURE 1-2 EBONY GAMING BOARD WITH BAND OF GILT INLAID SYMOLS (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 16) ........................................... 14 FIGURE 1-3 BOX WITH WHITE PAINT ON GESSO INTENDED TO IMITATE MORE EXPENSIVE IVORY INLAY (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 13) .... 14 FIGURE 1-4 EBONY SEAT INLAID WITH IVORY TO IMITATE ANIMAL PELT, COMPLETE WITH TAIL (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 12) .............. 14 FIGURE 1-5 13TH CENTURY CHEST WITH CARVED CHIVALRIC SCENE (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 27) .................................................. 15 FIGURE 1-6 14TH CENTURY CHEST WITH CARVED ARCHITECTURAL THEME ............................................................................ 15 FIGURE 1-7 12TH CENTURY PAINTED SACRISTY CUPBOARD (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 24) ............................................................. 15 FIGURE 1-8 14TH CENTURY PAINTED BED FROM ITALY ...................................................................................................... 15 TH FIGURE 1-9 INLAID PANEL FROM 16 CENTURY CHEST (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 40) .................................................................. 17 FIGURE 1-10 GILDED AND PAINTED PANELS ON ITALIAN CASSONE (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 37).................................................... 17 FIGURE 1-11 ITALIAN CUPBOARD WITH INTARSIA DECORATIONS, 1502 (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 38) ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. FIGURE 1-12 DETAIL OF INTARSIA FROM THE FAMOUS 16TH WRANGELSCHRANK CABINET (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 49) ................... 17 FIGURE 1-13 1649 ITALIAN TABLE TOP INLAID WITH SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 64)..................................... 17 FIGURE 1-14 17TH CENTURY CABINET WITH PAINTED PANELS (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 57) ........................................................ 18 FIGURE 1-15 ENGLISH 17TH CENTURY JAPANNED LEGS (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 87) ................................................................. 18 FIGURE 1-16 PAINTED LATTICE ON DELICATE 18TH CENTURY TABLE (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 116)................................................ 18 FIGURE 1-17 JAPANESE LACQUERED CASE ATOP FRENCH STAND, 1664 (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 80) ............................................ 18 FIGURE 1-18 1690 JAPANNED CABINET ON GILTWOOD FRAME (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 88) ....................................................... 19 FIGURE 1-19. 1788 CABINET, EBONY VENEERED, WITH JAPANESE LACQUERED PANELS (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 122) ...................... 19 FIGURE 1-20 MID 18TH CENTURY AMERICAN QUEEN ANNE HIGH CHEST IS PAINTED IN IMITATION OF ORIENTAL LACQUERING (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 192) ................................................................................................................................ 20 FIGURE 1-21 PAINTED PINE CHEST FROM PENNSYLVANIA, 1780 (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 192).................................................. 20 FIGURE 1-22 PAINTED BEECH 1796, AMERICAN COPY OF HEPPLEWHITE STYLE CHAIR (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 192)........................ 20 FIGURE 1-23 1854 TABLETOP INLAID WITH IVORY, MOTHER-OF-PEARL AND 20 DIFFERENT WOODS, CHARACTERISING THE INTRICACY (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 214) ................................................................................................................................ 21 FIGURE 1-24 CABINET WITH IVORY AND MOTHER OF PEARL INLAY, 1887. (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 217) ....................................... 21 FIGURE 1-25 PHILIP WEBB CABINET PAINTED BY WILLIAM MORRIS 1862 (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 220) ...................................... 21 FIGURE 1-26 1862 CABINET BY BURGESS, PAINTED BY BURNE JONES AND OTHERS. (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 224).......................... 21 FIGURE 1-27 PAINTING BY BRANGWYN 1910 ON A CABINET BY TURPIN (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 231) ......................................... 22 FIGURE 1-28 MACKINTOSH CABINET WITH OPAQUE GLASS INLAY, 1902 (HAYWARD, 1969 P. 230)......................................... 22 FIGURE 1-29 CHAIR OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN SHOWS GEOMETRIC PATTERNS DONE IN MARQUETRY, IN THE ART DECO STYLE (ROGERS, 2008) ........................................................................................................................................................... 24 FIGURE 1-30 LACQUERED SCREEN BY EILEEN GRAY, 1930 (DUNCAN, 1984 P. 40) ............................................................... 24 FIGURE 1-31 ART DECO BED BY DUNAND, 1930 (DUNCAN, 1984 P. 35) ........................................................................... 24 FIGURE 1-32 ART DECO COMMODE BY DUNAND (DUNCAN, 1984 P. 35) .......................................................................... 24 FIGURE 1-33 ART DECO BAR, TORN LACQUER AND EGGSHEL, DUNAND 1928 (DUNCAN, 1984 P. 36) ...................................... 24 FIGURE 1-34 DUNAND LACQUER SCREEN 1928 (DUNCAN, 1984 P. 36) ............................................................................ 24 FIGURE 1-35 PRATT CHAIR (PESCE, 1984, (MOMA, 2010)) ........................................................................................... 25 FIGURE 1-36 QUEEN ANNE (VENTURI, 1983, (MOMA, 2010)) ....................................................................................... 25 FIGURE 1-37 MISS BLANCHE (KURAMATA, 1988, (MOMA, 2010)) ................................................................................. 25 FIGURE 2-1 ANNUAL FURNITURE CONSUMPTION (STG) PER CAPITA BY COUNTRY .................................................................. 30 FIGURE 2-2 DESTINATIONS OF IRISH FURNITURE EXPORTS .................................................................................................. 30 FIGURE 2-3 PINK TOILE CHEST WITH WALLPAPER BY TIMOROUS BEASTIES (PORTER, 2009) ................................................... 31 FIGURE 2-4 CRISP BOXES (PORTER) .............................................................................................................................. 31 FIGURE 2-5 FLY TIP TABLE (CAYLESS, DATE UNKNOWN) ................................................................................................... 32 FIGURE 2-6 PERISHED COLLECTION, LASER CUT INLAY, STUDIO JOB, (LOVELL, 2007 P. 16) .................................................... 33 FIGURE 2-7 ROCKING CHAIR, EMBROIDERED WOOL FELT ON BOARD, MOA JANTZE 2005 (LOVELL, 2007 P. 40) ......................... 33 FIGURE 2-8 POSSESSION CHEST, SILK SCREEN ON BLACK LACQUER, ANTOINE + MANUEL (LOVELL, 2007 P. 41) .......................... 33 FIGURE 2-9 RENOVATED SOFA, RAW NERVE, (LOVELL, 2007 P. 42) ................................................................................... 33 FIGURE 2-10 HACKNEY SHELF, RECLAIMED LONDON HOARDING, RYAN FRANK (LOVELL, 2007 P. 43)........................................ 33

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FIGURE 2-11 BOULE SIDEBOARD. HAND-PAINTED, STEVEN SHELL (SHELL, 2010) .................................................................. 33 FIGURE 2-14 LICHEN TABLE, LICHEN WITH ACRYLIC RESIN, FARM 21 (SYKES, 2010) .............................................................. 34 FIGURE 2-15 FAIRY TREE WINDOW BLIND, FARM 21....................................................................................................... 34 FIGURE 2-12 HUMMINGBIRD GRAPHIC DRESSER (IANNONE, 2006) ................................................................................... 34 FIGURE 2-13 EAT GRAFFITI TABLE (CHARLES, DATE UNKNOWN) ........................................................................................ 34 FIGURE 2-16 RIO SIDEBOARD FROM FURNITURE GRAPHICS ............................................................................................... 35 FIGURE 6-1 POSITION OF BASE COATS ON BOTH SUBSTRATES (MDF AND POPLAR PLY) ........................................................... 65 FIGURE 6-2 CLAMPING MECHANISM SHOWING 16 SAMPLES ON EITHER SIDE OF THE CLAMPING STRIP. ....................................... 68 FIGURE 6-3 BLUE WOOL STANDARDS SHOWN AFTER TESTING, ARRANGED 8 TO 1, LEFT TO RIGHT. ............................................ 68 FIGURE 6-4 SECTION THROUGH LIGHT BOX SHOWING SAMPLE POSITIONING ......................................................................... 69 FIGURE 6-5 PROCESSED IMAGE OF BW8 ....................................................................................................................... 71 FIGURE 6-6 PROCESSED IMAGE OF BW7 ....................................................................................................................... 71 FIGURE 6-7 BREAK DOWN OF BW EQUIVALENTS OF 32 TESTED SAMPLES ............................................................................. 72 FIGURE 6-8 FURTHER BREAKDOWN BY MATERIAL ............................................................................................................ 73 FIGURE 0-1 TABLE OF FADE TEST GRADING FOR MDF SAMPLES......................................................................................... 85 FIGURE 0-2 TABLE OF FADE TEST GRADING FOR POPLAR PLY SAMPLES ................................................................................ 86 FIGURE 0-3 MARIMEKKO TRAY TABLES.......................................................................................................................... 99 FIGURE 0-4 OCCHIO COFFEE TABLE VIEWED FROM ABOVE ................................................................................................. 99 FIGURE 0-5 MICKI STORAGE BOX ................................................................................................................................. 99 INCLUDE CHAPTER NUMBER WHEN REFERENCING FIGURE 0-1 PICTURE OF CAR FIGS AND TABLE ..... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.

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Glossary
Contemporary furniture: Strictly speaking, this is furniture of today but is understood in this work to refer to furniture which is on the market now, but can be stretched to include furniture that has been regarded as avante garde in recent years. To be specific it will, in this work, refer either to avante garde furniture of the 21st century or in another context, if referring to less cutting edge furniture, it can be taken to refer to furniture that it currently on the market. Hence, the definition here varies with context. Japanning (Japan Work): This is a term used in England and America to describe lacquer made in imitation of Oriental lacquer. Both Chinese and Oriental lacquer was widely collected by European patrons in the late 17th and earlier part of the 18th centuries but the Japanese was of higher quality. As demand exceeded supply, European craftsmen were quick to provide for the fashion by their own efforts. English Japan work was often in bright colours such as scarlet or yellow and much of it was exported to Portugal. Normally designs were raised on the surface but inferior work was merely varnished.(Hayward, 1969 p. 309) Graphics: Graphics are defined by Lucie-Smith ((2003 p. 105) as Illustrations, diagrams or designs accompanying printed matter. In this work, however, the term is stretched to include any two dimensional form of pictorial or patterned ornament. In this work, it further implies coverage of an area with the ornament rather than simply highlights or details such as borders. Though two dimensional, it can include for this work, relief carving, particularly in the context of older furniture. Marquetry: Wood Inlay used on Furniture (Lucie-Smith, 2003 p. 135) Intarsia: A type of Marquetry used in Italy... It often has figurative subjects or shows elaborate perspective effects (Lucie-Smith, 2003 p. 119) Light Fastness: The resistance of subject to colour change and degradation due to exposure to light (Barnett, 2005) Scumble: To apply a thin layer of semi-opaque paint over a colour to modify it. A scumble is a layer of paint used in this way. Removing some of the scumble with combs or brushes can leave a wood-grain effect.

Introduction
Background
An increase was perceived in the quantity and quality of graphics applied to a wide range of fashion-led items such as clothing, upholstery, soft furnishings and kitchen ware. The nature of the imagery applied to consumer products seemed to have expanded from sketched, printed, painted or illustrated graphics to include photographic imagery. It appeared that the proliferation of graphics on such commodities was not as widespread in contemporary furniture. Thus, the graphical enhancement of furniture was initially perceived as a potentially under-developed market warranting further research.

Purpose
For a furniture designer or manufacturer

Objectives
To understand the market for applying graphics to furniture based on the history of graphically decorated furniture and on current trends in a broader range of graphically decorated commodities and current trends in furniture. To identify and assess an accessible process to apply customised graphics to wood based material. Based on the preceding research, recommend appropriate furniture applications for graphically enhanced sheet material and methods of producing these graphics.

Scope
Graphics and pattern is widely used on fabric. This is an established and successful method of decoration and so, while some references are made to upholstery and soft furnishing in context, this is outside the scope. This research is confined to the use of graphics on hard surfaces in furniture. This research does not consider wall art as furniture though it is understood that the line may be blurred in some cases. A painting on a wall is outside the scope while the same painting applied to a piece of functional furniture is within the scope. Artistic Printing-making and Graphic design are individually focused skills which take concentrated training to perfect. Aesthetic appreciation of a particular image or pattern is personal and the outcomes of this research should not be coloured by personal appreciation of a graphic and without good understanding of these fields, 10

creation of a graphic design for application to furniture, would introduce this risk. For this reason, design of a furniture item is outside the scope. Childrens furniture will be touched upon as a potential market but this is one of many possible markets, each of which would need focused market research and could be separate bodies of work in themselves. Because of the breadth of the research needed for childrens furniture, this is outside the scope.

Research methodology
History: A comprehensive assessment of the history of graphical ornament pictorial and patterned of solid surfaces of furniture is needed to provide a context for the use of graphics today. Many books have been written on furniture history but to assess the historical application of graphics on furniture, a comprehensive, high level resource was chosen as a starting point. The book chosen, World Furniture (Hayward, 1969) provides a comprehensive history with good imagery for quick identification of graphical furniture. This overview was cross-referenced with Furniture: a concise history (Lucie-Smith, 1979) and The History of Furniture (Orbis Publishing, 1976). Other references are also cited where appropriate.

Market Research: Recent and current use of graphics was assessed through several channels: Retail review through visits to furniture stores in Ireland and reviews of Irish and UK and some international furniture retailers websites. An online discussion group was set up to conduct a Delphi Study to find consensus on the market possibilities for graphics in furniture.

Techniques of applying graphics to furniture were assessed through visits to manufacturers, consultation through email with equipment manufacturers and interviews with print professionals. The process and suitability of one of the more accessible techniques for a small furniture maker was assessed through testing.

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12

1 History of graphically enhanced furniture

1.1 Introduction
It is commonly known that furniture has been graphically embellished throughout history, at least as far back as ancient Egyptian times. However, the methods of applying these graphics as well as the forms and functions of the decorated furniture have varied greatly and the breadth of these variations should be understood to guide decisions on the use of graphics in new furniture design. This chapter will highlight the techniques used to apply graphics to furniture through each period in history. The chapter will also analyse the situations in which graphics are applied the broad function of the furniture be it table, chair or storage, functional, decorative or ceremonial, for wealthy or poor users, and the types of surfaces they are applied to, be they panels, structural members, high-traffic/horizontal surfaces such as seats or table tops or low-traffic such as a vertical panels. This chapter looks for the emergence of trends from this analysis to assist in deciding later on the most appropriate uses of graphics on furniture.

1.2 Before the 20th Century

From as far back as ancient times, craftsmen applied graphical embellishment to interior furnishings and vessels (Hayward, 1969 pp. 10-17). Detailed wood, metal and stone inlays as well as gesso and paint were not uncommon on luxury furniture and were often used to mask inferior timbers. Relief carving also commonly formed part of the embellishment. Ancient Egyptians typically sat and slept on mats of reeds and rushes while evidence of more exalted furniture such as beds, stools, chairs, armchairs (and thrones) and boxes, is seen in carvings and tombs of the elite. Thrones in particular were more a symbol of status (Hayward, 1969 p. 10) than functional objects suggesting that comfort and durability was not the prime concern. Thrones from the tomb of Tutankhamen are adorned on every flat surface with detailed wood, metal and stone inlay (Figure 1-1). Less intricate patterns were also created on the less ceremonial furniture with chair seats often made from woven cord keeping the graphic embellishment to the chair back. One striking exception comes again from the tomb of Tutankhamen; a stool with its seat made of ebony, inlaid with ivory in a vaguely floral pattern, and shaped to suggest real animal hide (Figure 1-4). Figure 1-2 shows a more subdued band of inlaid symbols around an ebony gaming board while Figure 1-3 shows a box of lighter wood coated in black gesso and painted white in imitation of ebony inlaid with ivory. 13

CHANGE PIC
Figure 1-1 Ecclesiastical Throne with back overlaid with Faience, glass, semi-precious stones and panels of ebony and ivory (Hayward, 1969 p. Fronticepiece) Figure 1-2 Ebony gaming board with band of gilt inlaid symbols (Hayward, 1969 p. 16)

Figure 1-3 Box with White Paint on Gesso intended to imitate more expensive ivory inlay (Hayward, 1969 p. 13)

Figure 1-4 Ebony seat inlaid with ivory to imitate animal pelt, complete with tail(Hayward, 1969 p. 12)

Ancient Greek and Roman furniture is an evolution from that of Egyptian times. Egyptian beds evolved into Greek couches inlaid with fine woods, gems and precious metals for decoration, though vessels often had more intricate, painted scenes. The Greek klismos and diphros also have Egyptian origins. Another form of low stool used by working classes is said to have geometric designs or human figures painted on the upright members (Hayward, 1969 p. 15). Other footstools and chests were similar to Egyptian predecessors though from the evidence in friezes, carving and engraving seems to have been more common on Greek furniture. While wooden furniture was preserved inside Egyptian tombs, there are few examples of wooden furniture from these later civilisations, though it is suggested that it must have been the most common material (Hayward, 1969 p. 14). It could be interpreted that painting of wooden furniture would have been as common if not more so, in Greek and Roman times as in Egyptian times but the organic material was not preserved. The ornament of furniture depicted on terracotta and stone friezes could as easily represent painted pattern as the well known carving and etching. 14

Medieval furniture was typically of heavy wooden members and often architectural in nature. Much of the ornament was carved but there is also evidence to suggest panelling was sometimes elaborately painted. Similar to ancient Egyptian to Roman furniture, such embellishment would be the preserve of the ruling classes or the church. The furnishings that might be ornately painted include wooden thrones, chairs, architectural cupboards and wall shelving of massive timbers, chests and boxes (Hayward, 1969 pp. 21,22). Desks were sometimes combined with a lectern wooden and elaborately painted with geometric patterns. A chair following the classical tradition with x-supports is also said to have been elaborately painted when made of wood. It seems that much of the warmth and colour in these castles, great houses and religious buildings was provided by patterned wall hangings and curtains and by tapestries.

Figure 1-5 13th Century chest with carved chivalric scene(Hayward, 1969 p. 27)

Figure 1-6 14th Century chest with carved architectural theme

Figure 1-7 12th Century Painted sacristy cupboard (Hayward, 1969 p. 24)

Figure 1-8 14th century painted bed from Italy

As is common throughout history, the poorer classes had crude if any furniture but the Gothic furniture of wealthy classes was commonly decorated with relief carvings across most of Europe. Ornament was usually architectural (Figure 1-6) though chivalric scenes were also often used (Figure 1-5). The influence did not fully take hold in Italy however, and here, 15

furniture decoration was often painted rather than carved, as shown in Figure 1-7. Italian painting skill developed before the Renaissance and chests were often painted with such skill that they were disassembled and the panels displayed as pictures. Furniture generally was still quite bulky constructed usually with panels. It was these panels that were usually ornamented, whether they were on beds, chests, ceremonial chairs, desks or cabinets as they later developed (Hayward, 1969 pp. 26-34).

The Renaissance saw great advances in art. Furniture ornament became more elaborate. French furniture was rarely without carved ornament. Italian furniture of the same period was decorated quite differently. Chairs, table-tops and credenzas would have been covered with boldly patterned fabrics such as damask cloth. The furniture beneath these covers was often rough and ready (Hayward, 1969 p. 36). Uncovered furniture was intricately decorated with both carved patterns and with pictorial panels painted or with intarsia decoration (Figure 1-9). The general functions of the adorned furniture did not change much but as cabinet making techniques evolved from simple mortise and tenon joints and grooved panels to include finer dovetail and mitre joints and concealed (rather than through) tenons, furniture became more refined and less bulky. Table tops were often inlaid but otherwise, most graphical ornament was restricted to vertical panels as seen in Figure 1-10 while and Figure 1-12 are examples of the intricacy of intarsia of the period. Spanish and Portuguese furniture exhibited many of the same traits, particularly in the level of intricacy of ornament but the subject of the ornament was much more influenced by the Moors and the Orient (Portugals main trading partner). These influences created more examples of geometric pattern than was evident in the rest of Europe.

16

Figure 1-9 Inlaid panel from 16th Century chest (Hayward, 1969 p. 40)

Figure 1-10 Gilded and painted panels on Italian Cassone (Hayward, 1969 p. 37)

Figure 1-11 Italian Cupboard with Intarsia decorations, 1502(Hayward, 1969 p. 38)

Figure 1-12 Detail of Intarsia from the famous 16th Wrangelschrank cabinet(Hayward, 1969 p. 49)

Figure 1-13 1649 Italian table top inlaid with semi-precious stones (Hayward, 1969 p. 64)

17

The 17th and 18th centuries saw a tendency toward greater comfort and even further elaboration of furniture design. The use of upholstery allowed pattern to be applied to the seats of chairs and chaises longue which up to now was not common. On solid surfaces, traditional painting was still in use (Figure 1-14) but marquetry, intarsia, oystering and other forms of inlay, became more intricate and more common, with Lacquering influenced by the Orient becoming popular particularly in the 18th century. Furniture-making techniques evolved to allow lighter structures as shown in Figure 1-15 and Figure 1-16. The typical panel-construction as seen in Figure 1-10 which provided large flat surfaces suitable for displaying expansive ornamentation was now only used in casework. The supporting legs or frames could be much lighter. These frames, while sometimes embellished graphically were more typically, elaborately carved and the carcases they supported were very often inlaid with marquetry, oystering and with japanning becoming more popular, especially in the 18th century.

Figure 1-14 17th Century Cabinet with painted panels(Hayward, 1969 p. 57)

Figure 1-15 English 17th Century Japanned Legs (Hayward, 1969 p. 87)

Figure 1-16 painted lattice on delicate 18th Century table(Hayward, 1969 p. 116)

Figure 1-17 Japanese Lacquered case atop French stand, 1664(Hayward, 1969 p. 80)

18

Figure 1-17 to Figure 1-19 shows the enduring fashion of Japanese lacquering or for European copies as can be seen in figure 17.

Figure 1-18 1690 Japanned cabinet on gilt-wood frame (Hayward, 1969 p. 88)

Figure 1-19. 1788 Cabinet, ebony veneered, with Japanese lacquered panels (Hayward, 1969 p. 122)

In parallel to this accelerated development of European furniture, the remote settlers in America were continuing the traditions brought with them in the 17th century. Without the catalysing influences of Europe, the styles were less flamboyant and progressed much more slowly. Painted decoration was very popular on furniture panels in America at this time. The patterns applied by American cabinet makers in the 17th century were almost tribal in comparison to the intricate floral imagery in vogue with their European contemporaries. Some examples are shown below. The 18th century saw a closer match in techniques with painting becoming more intricate where used and with japanning gaining popularity.

19

Figure 1-21 Painted Pine Chest from Pennsylvania, 1780 (Hayward, 1969 p. 192)

Figure 1-20 mid 18th Century American Queen Anne high chest is painted in imitation of Oriental lacquering (Hayward, 1969 p. 192)

Figure 1-22 Painted beech 1796, American copy of Hepplewhite style chair (Hayward, 1969 p. 192)

While there are differences in the forms of furniture and styles of decoration across geographies and periods of these two centuries, the basic techniques used to add graphical ornament are common: Seats bore patterned upholstery; the panels and faces of the more expansive range of cabinetry were painted and lacquered, inlaid or veneered or less frequently, carved; Table tops, if not marble, were inlaid with often intricate patterns or covered with leather. Legs were typically adorned with carvings but less commonly some legs were also lacquered. The detail achieved in graphical ornamentation was very fine and often quite realistic as painting skills continued to flourish, combined with the added depth achieved through lacquering. Throughout the 19th century, forms varied greatly, with the early part tending to be simpler with less elaborate carvings. Patterns used in graphical ornamentation also changed and some new techniques were also used. Pen work became a popular technique in the Regency period;

20

Light coloured wood such as sycamore would be decorated with pen-drawn designs. Patterns to be copied using this technique were available to buy from print- and book-shops (Hayward, 1969 p. 203). Buhl-work, or marquetry of wood with brass was very popular in some cases, the pieces were so covered that the actual woodwork almost disappeared (Hayward, 1969 p. 206). Rococo and Gothic Revivals both encouraged intricate and elaborate carved ornamentation but the Gothic influence also influenced the Pre-Raphaelites Morris and Burne-Jones to apply painted medieval-style imagery to panelled furniture. Morris and Co. were famous for their floral patterns. These patterns were on wallpaper and fabric. The fabric was used in soft furnishings and upholstery but some of their earlier painted furniture is shown in Figure 1-25 and Figure 1-26.

Figure 1-23 1854 tabletop intricately inlaid with ivory, motherof-pearl and 20 different woods (Hayward, 1969 p. 214)

Figure 1-24 cabinet with ivory and mother of pearl inlay, 1887. (Hayward, 1969 p. 217)

Figure 1-25 Philip Webb Cabinet painted by William Morris 1862 (Hayward, 1969 p. 220)

Figure 1-26 1862 Cabinet by Burgess, painted by Burne Jones and others. (Hayward, 1969 p. 224)

Innovations in wallpaper manufacturing processes made wallpaper accessible to the masses (McGarry, 2010) and this in turn lessened the need for graphic embellishment on furniture. 21

Colour and pattern was easily available and clashing patterns between furniture ornament and wallpaper would have been undesirable. Towards the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries, furniture and its ornament became pared down and elegant forms approaching the Art Nouveau style became popular. The focus here was on the subtle, organic, curvilinear form and the techniques employed leaned towards craft based manufacture above industrial manufacture. In celebration of craft, much of the ornament was carved but two-dimensional graphical ornament does not form a significant element. Particularly in Britain, there are exceptions to this; most notably in the work of Mackintosh. The techniques used were still the labour intensive methods of inlay or painting. Some examples are shown here, with Mackintosh and Brangwyn being particular practitioners of graphic adornment of Art Nouveau.

Figure 1-28 Mackintosh Cabinet with opaque glass inlay, 1902 (Hayward, 1969 p. 230) Figure 1-27 Painting by Brangwyn 1910 on a cabinet by Turpin(Hayward, 1969 p. 231)

1.3 20th Century

The Modern Movement dominated the 20th Century. Even as early as 1907 when Peter Behrens partnered with AEG in Germany, technological development and industrial design was being led by America and Germany. Dormer proposes that America lead in manufacturing processes while industrial design was invented in Germany (Dormer). While these leading countries copied each other, the modern aesthetic essentially came from Europe. When designers of the early modern movement eventually overcame the tendency to use new materials and processes to create traditional forms, it was the abstract art of 22

Kandinsky and others that had the greatest influence (Hayward, 1969 p. 290). At a glance, it might seem strange that though inspired by a graphical medium, modernist furniture bears no visual resemblance to the art. However, the similarity and influence exists in the underlying principles. An easy way to understand this can found by looking at a quintessential example of modern furniture Reitvelds Red and Blue Chair. This chair pares back the traditional chair to an arrangement of planes and lines which still satisfy the essential function. As propounded by Adolf Loos in 1908, Ornament is Criminal (Dormer, 1987). This belief can be seen throughout the Modernist movement in the work of Le Corbusier, Gropius and Van Der Rohe to name a few. This widespread rejection of ornament explains why, not only twodimensional graphic ornament but carvings, mosaics and marquetry were excluded from Modernist furniture.

Art Deco was a counter-style in its decorative intent but later became influenced by the Modernist movement (Rogers, 2008). Some of Eileen Grays work would fall to this category but really, she defies straightforward categorisation as an Individualist (Duncan, 1984 p. 12). Graphic decoration, where it existed on art deco furniture and architecture used geometric pattern of Aztec and Egyptian inspiration. It was a grand, luxurious style and the decoration was often executed with inlay of wood, metals or stone. Lacquering became an important technique for leading designers such as Eileen Gray and Jean Dunand. Some striking examples of graphics, particularly lacquer-work are shown in the following figures

Another response to the Modern movement came in the form of Postmodernism. Postmodernism re-established the acceptability of ornament and has an underlying wit and visual symbolism (Rogers, 2008). This reopened the door for graphics on furniture as shown in the examples below. Figure 1-35 in particular shows an example of postmodernist use of graphics in the work of Robert Venturi, an important postmodernist theorist. Here Venturi pulls elements of a Queen Anne style chair, modernist manufacturing techniques and decorates it with a playful pattern. This juxtaposition of discrete references is a trait of the movement and this trait can be seen in many contemporary designs (such as the Timorous Beasties wallpaper of Bryonie Porter as discussed later in section 2.3 which takes traditional toile wallpaper but replaces the old rustic scenes with modern urban scenes, or the table of Charles OToole with a Modern laser-cut frame combined with hand-painted graffiti.

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Figure 1-29 Chair of unknown origin shows geometric patterns done in marquetry, in the Art Deco style (Rogers, 2008)

Figure 1-30 Lacquered Screen by Eileen Gray, 1930(Duncan, 1984 p. 40)

Figure 1-31 Art Deco Bed by Dunand, 1930(Duncan, 1984 p. 35)

Figure 1-32 Art Deco Commode by Dunand (Duncan, 1984 p. 35)

Figure 1-33 Art Deco Bar, torn lacquer and eggshell, Dunand 1928(Duncan, 1984 p. 36)

Figure 1-34 Dunand Lacquer Screen 1928 (Duncan, 1984 p. 36)

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Some Later examples of graphic furniture from the 20th Century: Gaetano Pesces Pratt chair, while not an applied graphic, displays a swirling graphic formed from the properties of the material used.

Figure 1-35 Pratt Chair (Pesce, 1984,(MoMA, 2010))

Figure 1-36 Queen Anne (Venturi, 1983, (MoMA, 2010))

Figure 1-37 Miss Blanche (Kuramata, 1988, (MoMA, 2010))

XXXXXX

XXXXXX

Figure 1-38 Marquetry fronted Wardrobe (Varah, 2006)

XXXXXX XXXXXX

XXXXXX XXXXXX

XXXXXX XXXXXX

Robert Venturi (Queen Anne) Venturi has an attraction to complexity and richness and places stress upon symbolism and decoration because he feels it allows a designer to produce variety in his work(Knoll, 2011) Shiro Kuramato (Miss Blanche)

1.4

Conclusion

Before the Modernist movement, graphics were widely used. The examples identified in the history books were usually finely crafted and were probably made for wealthy people. The 25

inlaid stone-topped table in Figure 1-13 took 15 years to make. The cost can be imagined. Furniture of this calibre is a statement of power and wealth rather than simply an aesthetic addition to a household, though the aesthetic function was served too. To go back to the Egyptian examples, the power was tied to religious beliefs and the ornament was in honour of these beliefs. The power and the religion are examples of a function of the graphics other than pure ornament. This concept will recur in chapter 3 in discussions with industry experts who unanimously and independently believe that the graphic should be more than decorative that it should have a primary function. Not all historical movements support this position

Not all movements support this position. The Modernist movement marked a great shift away from ornament toward pure function, and the idea of beauty through honesty in use of materials and in a form which follows function, to adapt Louis Sullivans modernist ideal. This is a school of though and is balanced by two other styles or movements of the 20th Century: Art Deco and Postmodernism as well as the patterns of the 1950s and 1960s where ornament and decoration was celebrated and it seems now that fashion trends of the 21st century can take elements of any of these past styles in combination. As a simple example of this from current interior trends: classic Modern pieces are used in the same spaces as Chintz papered accent walls the histories of these styles might be polar opposites but the trend is widespread and regarded as attractive. This shows that the meaning behind the use of graphics in their original setting does not necessarily translate to the same meaning in their contemporary incarnation.

The methods of application evolved from the basic inlay of Egyptian times to the extremely complex inlay of the 18th and 19th centuries; basic painting evolved to the perfection of japanning; technology was used in the 20th century as evident from patterned Formica. There were no surfaces precluded from graphic ornament even narrow table-legs were lacquered, as shown in Figure 1-15 and Figure 1-16. However, there are differences in the techniques used on different surfaces. Marquetry, inlay and intarsia etc. was used on every surface. Its a durable family of techniques. Lacquering seems only to be applied to vertical surfaces. This suggests that, despite the endurance of the examples, that the technique may not be suitable to high-traffic surfaces. A further extrapolation suggests that for contemporary application of graphics there may be techniques suited to horizontal, high-traffic uses and other techniques, less durable that may be adequate for vertical surfaces.

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27

2 Contemporary trends
2.1 Introduction
An analysis of the contemporary market is presented here. The analysis is conducted through secondary research. Specifically: statistical research of markets, particularly in Ireland and the UK an overview of some contemporary designers encountered in background research a more structured search through recommended design blogs a physical search of retail outlets and an internet search through retailers websites analysis of trend predictions arising from two major design shows in mainland Europe

2.2 Trends in Which Market?

It was seen as necessary to assess general trends in furniture so graphic trends could be placed in context. But which market should be assessed. In the opinion of Liam Dileen, MD of EZ living who contributed some expertise in the course of this research, the Irish market is miniscule compared to the global market or even European markets. (Dileen, 2011, per comm. January). He compares Ireland in terms of population to Greater Manchester. When seen from that perspective, it would be foolish of manufacturers and designers in Manchester to limit their market to that small region. Indeed, Irelands population at 4.2 million in 2006 is about a fifteenth of the population of the UK(Central Statistics Office, 2011). In 2006 however, at the height of the Celtic Tiger, only 18% of the countrys furniture manufacturing industry was exported. Compare this to the rest of the manufacturing industry: 88% of turnover was exported in the same year (Heanue, 2008 p. 14). This shows a skewed reliance on the domestic furniture market. This is not surprising as the booming domestic economy meant companies did not have to break into international markets to survive. Perhaps this easy domestic market was the reason that product development and innovation had been neglected in the Irish furniture industry as reported in 2004 by Intertrade Ireland (Intertrade Ireland, 2004 p. 9). In recent years, since the economic downturn began, the market has been badly affected. Three years on retail sales are still falling and in 2010 alone, the Retail Sales Index shows furniture and lighting sales in Ireland, down by 9.6% (Central Statistics Office, 2011 p. 1). This general slowdown in furniture retail activity suggests that the domestic market is no longer a rich hunting ground so now designers and manufacturers must look outside the country for growth or even survival.

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The UK is one viable market with no trade restrictions and low delivery costs. Seven years ago, Intertrade Ireland valued Irish exports to the UK at 60% of the countrys total furniture exports but as mentioned above, Irish furniture exports are a very small proportion of countrys total furniture industry turnover so exports to Irelands nearest and very large neighbour would have been about 11% of the turnover for that year. To assess furniture trade in the opposite direction Ireland imported 42% of its furniture from the UK in 2002 (Intertrade Ireland, 2004 p. 34) this may have shifted since then but a much more recent FIRA report declares Ireland as the number one importer of UK Furniture Exports , accounting for 31% of the UKs 1.1 billion furniture export market. Ireland is Englands best customer but England imports less than 1% of its furniture from Ireland (FIRA, 2010 p. 17). Recent news reports show Irish exports, generally up for 2010. This is positive. Can the UK market be developed? General knowledge of the market and the level of commonality of retailers suggest that high-street fashion trends between the Irish and UK markets have many similarities so in theory there should be little difficulty for Irish designers in understanding and designing for the UK market. As suggested earlier, the difficulty in the past may have been in the lack of necessity and hence the lack of investment by Irish manufacturers. Based on the largely one-way trade between the two countries, high street furniture trends in Ireland tend to be lead by UK trends. This can be seen in the number of UK owned furniture retailers in the country in recent years. Some of these At an haute couture level however, London has a thriving design culture. At this level, Ireland tends to follow a few steps behind if at all and to compete on any great scale at this leading edge of design in a Global or European stage would be difficult. It could be achieved by Irish designers, and indeed is in some cases. It would be difficult to keep up with such rapidly changing trends from a remote location but through continuous market research, regular visits and attendance at design shows such as Londons 100% Design, Milans Salone and Colognes IMM, development of the UK as an Irish Export market should be possible but it seems much work must be done on product design, development and innovation as well as considerable investment in market research.

Now referring again to the UK competitiveness report (FIRA, 2010 p. 11), Canada is the largest consumer in the world of furniture per capita. Lets assume that the US and Canada are problematic for logistical reasons (e.g. cost of shipping furniture) and import duties in 29

these countries, there are other huge markets within the EU free market. The top consumers are shown in Figure 2-1. Transport is relatively cheap compared to non-EU and our labour costs are now coming down so we are missing out on these very attractive markets

Figure 2-1 Annual furniture consumption (stg) per capita by country

Figure 2-2 Destinations of Irish furniture exports

Now, compare this consumption to Irelands actual furniture export destinations (Intertrade Ireland, 2004 p. 27). Probably the most surprising figure is the prominence of the US but considering the low value of our exports, this could be skewed by a few Joseph Walshe tables! However, from a market analysis point of view, it shows that, though six of the top furniture consuming nations of the world are virtually on our doorstep, we only scratch the surface of one of them. In any other industry, this would be classed as a failure of the industry to develop an export market (referring again to the figure of 88% of turnover exported in other manufacturing industries compared to 18% in the furniture industry) when so many markets are accessible.

2.3 Contemporary use of graphics in interiors and furniture

The scope of this project is limited to graphics on furniture. However, being an aspect of interior design, furniture must be considered in the context of an interior aesthetic rather than as an isolated item. More general graphical enhancement of interiors should be assumed to influence furniture appearance. Influential interior elements include the use of graphics on contemporary soft furnishings, wall coverings and flooring as well as contemporary furniture. Analysis of graphical trends in these dominant elements of interior design is intended to set a backdrop for the application of graphics on furniture identifying the types of furniture that are successful when embellished with graphics, and identifying the styles of graphics that are successful when applied to interiors. 30

Broader yet, contemporary interior colours and forms could be explored for their influence on furniture aesthetics but this would be a much broader scope with a less significant, more subjective impact. This chapter will focus on the graphical influence from all contemporary interior design elements but will consider form and colour when necessary.

Bryonie Porter customises existing furniture by applying wallpaper (Porter). The wallpaper chosen includes such contemporary wallpaper designers as Timorous Beasties as shown in Figure 2-3. This is a low tech means of applying graphics. Her customising service has found favour with several retailers in the UK including Selfridges and has received coverage in many UK interior Magazines. The cost of the service ranges from 700 to 1200 which is a non-trivial add-on to the cost of the furniture but were it to rescue an otherwise outdated piece, it is not
Figure 2-3 Pink Toile Chest with Wallpaper by Timorous Beasties (Porter, 2009)

unaffordable. The approach allows Porter the flexibility to change designs simply by keeping abreast of changes in wallpaper trends. It allows customers the option to update existing furniture, albeit at a cost, rather than purchasing new pieces.

Alexena Cayless is a furniture designer with a sculpture background but also makes use of print on some designs. Figure 2-4 shows her Crisp Boxes which are simple screen printed graphics. On another of her ranges, Fly Tip Furniture,
Figure 2-4 Crisp Boxes (Porter)

a new skin is applied to discarded furniture. Black and white

prints are applied, recording where each piece was found. This link between the graphic and the history of the piece is an interesting design and resonates with some opinions of industry experts which will be discussed later.

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Figure 2-5 Fly Tip Table (Cayless, Date unknown)

A selection of Graphic Furniture from various contemporary designers is shown on page 33. Most of these at least in 2007 were cutting edge designers as chosen for the book Furnish; Furniture and Interior Design for the 21st century. Each caption describes the method of graphic enhancement. It should be noted that the first five of these six designers are high-end, bespoke or very limited run products. The exception is Steven Shell Furnishings who claims that furniture is hand painted. However, this could refer to the base colour. Considering the range of furniture available from this company, it seems likely that the graphics are applied with a print medium and finished with a coat of lacquer but without physical inspection, it is impossible to be certain. An alternative is to manufacture them in a low cost economy where hand-painting of these simple patterns would be cost effective.

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Figure 2-6 Perished Collection, Laser cut inlay, Studio Job, (Lovell, 2007 p. 16)

Figure 2-7 Rocking Chair, embroidered wool felt on board, Moa Jantze 2005 (Lovell, 2007 p. 40)

Figure 2-8 Possession chest, Silk screen on black lacquer, Antoine + Manuel (Lovell, 2007 p. 41) Figure 2-9 Renovated sofa, Raw Nerve,(Lovell, 2007 p. 42)

Figure 2-11 Boule Sideboard. Hand-painted, Steven Shell(Shell, 2010) Figure 2-10 Hackney shelf, reclaimed London hoarding, Ryan Frank (Lovell, 2007 p. 43)

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Iannone Design is a small US based designer who cuts simple silhouettes from laminate and applies it to sustainable plywood. This creates quite a bold graphic using low-tech methods.
Figure 2-12 Hummingbird Graphic Dresser (Iannone, 2006)

Figure 2-12 shows an example and most of Iannones work is in this vein.

Charles (OToole) is a Dublin based furniture designer, not typically associated with graphic furniture so this piece is interesting as it appears to be a different direction the designer. The graphic is by collaboration with graffiti artist Klit.

Figure 2-13 Eat Graffiti Table (Charles, Date unknown)

Farm 21 by Sasha Sykes(Sykes, 2010), a Carlow based furniture designer works mainly with natural materials combined with Acrylic. While Sasha does not intend there to be a graphic element, (Sikes, 2011) the result can be interpreted as a two dimensional pattern. The framing of natural materials within acrylic clear can be seen as a graphic medium Figure 2-14. The work of Farm 21 also includes lamp-shades and blinds (Figure 2-15)printed with photographic images.

Figure 2-14 Lichen Table, lichen with acrylic resin, Farm 21(Sykes, 2010)

Figure 2-15 Fairy Tree Window Blind, Farm 21

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There are many bespoke designers that use simple cabinetry. Furniture Graphics are one such company. An example of their cabinets is shown in Figure 2-16 has a very basic, uninspiring cabinet underneath but the quality of the graphic means the viewer is much less likely to focus on the bland structure.

Figure 2-16 Rio sideboard from Furniture Graphics

2.4 Design Blogs

A review of design blogs was seen as a way to identify up to the minute trends and search for evidence of the use of graphics. As the world of blogs in unregulated, a list of blogs was recommended by Dr. Marion McGarry of GMIT for their quality and their focus on interior design. This list was adopted as a starting point for this review. The detail of this review is listed in the appendix. Of the many blogs combed, a handful of references to, or examples of graphic furniture were found. These are listed with the appendix. XXXXXX

2.5 Irish and UK Furniture Retailers

Every furniture store in Galway was visited from October to November 2010 specifically to locate graphic furniture. In December 2010 and January 2011, many furniture stores on the east coast of Ireland were visited. Cempo interiors in Athlone and Objekt in Newcastle West were also visited. Online stores were also assessed, particularly for UK retailers. The retail outlets and websites assessed were mostly UK and Ireland-based. (The context of other European furniture markets was not familiar and the language made it more difficult. The French retail market was assessed by searching for and reviewing furniture retailers in France but with limited success. Websites such as Yamakado.com, Labarere.com, Aare.fr and fly.fr

35

were checked completely. The styles did not differ greatly to the UK and Irish retailers, with a lot of wood and leather.) Observations of each store assessed are given in the appendix on P95 but to summarise: Of the 20 furniture retailers surveyed, 4 had examples of graphic furniture. Within these four retailers, graphic content was evident on just a tiny part of their product ranges and in the case of IKEA and Objekt, these were very subdued patterns on frosted glass table tops. Scandinavian Design Centre was an exception in the boldness of the graphic but they are not actually UK centred but try to address the broader European market. A significant proportion of Busy Bees Furniture has graphic content. Busy bees renovate old furniture or recycle discarded furniture and graphics are a way to give old forms a contemporary face. In their case, while the furniture is attractive, it has a decided craft-feel. The detail on the stores and websites visited is provided in the appendix in a table and in some deeper analysis of some stores but from this, quite broad review of the market, only one conclusion is forthcoming:

There is practically no graphic furniture being sold in the UK and Ireland at the moment.

With respect to new furniture sales, the exceptions to this are a negligible component of the observed retailers product lines. With respect to renovated furniture, graphic techniques, particularly painting and ink transfer techniques are a significant tool used in freshening up a piece. This is becoming more popular, with several small renovation outfits having been observed opening across the UK and Ireland over the last few year. In England for example, Fears and Kahn provide high-quality refurbished and renovated furniture with graphics being a significant component (Fears and Kahn). They use lacquering, painting and printed HPL to apply graphics. This upsurge was also noticed by discussion contributors Colin Farmer and Charles OToole. Indeed, Dublin City council works with Sunflower recycling and Busy Bees Furniture to facilitate recycling of discarded pieces (Sunflower Recycling).

2.6 The Billy Anomaly

One perceived anomaly needs to be discussed in isolation as this was actually the one of the catalysts for this analysis on the use of graphics on furniture. Much of the information below was obtained during employment induction and through observation during employment.

IKEA has been a major influence on the furniture retail market in Ireland today since their arrival in 2009 with consistent daily sales in the region of 200,000 in the first six months 36

(Doyle, 2009). On a visit to a Swedewood plant (IKEA subsidiary) in 2010 it was reported that 13 million lack tables were manufactured in 2009 alone. With volumes of this order, their product line should be examined for graphical content. Several walk-throughs were conducted between October 2010 and March 2011as part of the retail review discussed in the previous chapter but no examples of graphic furniture were observed with the exception of two glass tables with single-coloured patterns (e.g. Vika Glasholm). One range of graphic furniture the Billy Bookcase 30th anniversary range was released in 2009. These were melamine foil-wrapped with playful prints of small repeating patterns, one in black and white, one in green (or red) and white and one with multi-coloured pattern on white. These were a limited edition and were given the most prominent location in the Dublin store which typically stimulates sales of the promoted line. IKEA has a small margin on each item sold and so is profitable because of the huge worldwide volumes (Doyle, 2009), it is believed that if this jaunty Billy were successful enough, then graphics would be introduced in some way to similar storage products. However, IKEA traditionally doesnt change very quickly, releasing a relatively small number of new lines or modifications every year. While the market for graphics would have been thoroughly researched by their design team, it should be noted that the leading edge of design is not usually associated with high volume sales so when high volumes need to be sold, as in IKEAs business model, the safer position would be to follow fashion rather than be at the leading edge of fashion.

IKEA is quite closed about the changes to product lines so it was not possible to pinpoint the exact logic behind the short life of the product-line. However some possibilities can be suggested from informal conversions with some IKEA sales staff and a little common sense: The product may have been a failure. The promotional literature for the limited edition says that these are just that, a limited edition but the reaction of the sales staff was mixed. Some said that they were very slow to sell compared to the less prominent traditional Billy products while others said that some customers were still asking for them 3 months after they were sold out. If the product was slow to sell, then it may not have been worth the cost of carrying an extra line The short life may have been a once off promotional tool get in, promote up a storm, make a profit and get out. The product might have been an experiment in graphics or in promotion or in the effect of new variants on existing established product ranges.

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The fact IKEA invested enough to expand the Billy range could be taken as the culmination of extensive market research. The removal of the product may not mean the product was a failure - just that it did not achieve IKEAs aggressive targets. Hence this could be taken as proof of concept that there is strong market potential for graphic furniture.

2.7 European Trends

As mentioned in the previous section, the French retail market, as far as it was assessed had no evidence of graphics. A similar look was taken at Italian retailers but the information was clouded with commercial spinning of Italys furniture design tradition so it was unclear what types of retailers were being reviewed. Advice was sought elsewhere. During an opening interview with Liam Dileen, MD of EZ Living, his immediate response matched the conclusions of the last section that the UK and Ireland favoured wood-finish furniture. He elaborated to describe his experiences at trade fairs in Italy in particular. He believes that the Italians have an appetite for, as he put it, more progressive design, meaning furniture with graphics instead of wood-grain. He induced that this would similarly apply to France and Spain, though he admitted that he was less familiar with these markets. He did specifically say that The French have a passion for old style painted furniture with simple, floral designs. Dileen cited visits to trade-shows as his source for knowledge on European trends. This suggested that these other trade and in particular, design shows might clarify the European taste for graphics. Two of the largest European design fairs were targeted. The cost to attend was prohibitive but much information can be gleaned from the websites. Also, John Jenkins, one of the contributing industry experts summarised the Milan fair in a presentation which he delivered to an Enterprise Ireland conference in November 2010, so Milan was the starting point. Reviewing John Jenkins slides showed no graphics applied to hard surfaces of furniture. He states that movement in visual trends would be in form, colour and material. The omission of pattern or image here is seen as significant. The forms were described as simple organic forms. This matches Marion McGarrys lectures in Interior Design where softer forms were seen to replace angular forms. Material and its surface treatment were seen as important by Jenkins, with embossing, stitching and quilting emphasised. These however were fabrics. In terms of solid surfaces, lower gloss lacquers and natural colour tones were evident while the dominant wood was American Walnut. Nowhere is pattern or image mentioned in his presentation(Jenkins, 2010) 38

At IMM Cologne, German trend expert Ursula Geismann proposed trends for 2010(Geismann, 2010). She proposed some trends that were to continue and others that were on the way. Her full list of recommendations is listed in

39

Appendix (iv): Trend Predictions of Ursula Geismann , but here is a summary of the particular elements that may have significance to the use of graphics.

Visually, the "Mega-colour" white for storage furniture surfaces and Aubergine for a splash of colour was here to stay. There is no mention here of the use of graphics to add colour buts Rococo ornament as patterns in woven fabric or velvet-like relief was also to remain. Some pieces would continue to appear which were designed to be viewed from all round and so could be positioned away from walls. This could provide an opportunity for an extra, less prominent surface that could be detailed with graphics. She saw a continuation in the trend of designing furniture to last. This could be a mark against permanent graphics which might be seen to date a piece of furniture. This idea that graphic tastes change with fashion is supported by some of the contributing industry experts and will be discussed later. Themed childrens rooms were already in fashion and according to Geismann, would continue. This is an obvious application for graphics, also supported by some of the contributing industry experts. Among the trends that she predicts are on the way are: Garden furniture that looks like living room furniture. This is not seen as directly relevant to graphics but is seen as an indicator of an interest in blurring the lines between the interior spaces and the outdoors. An opportunity may exist to use photo-realistic prints of outdoor themes, images of nature, patterns based on nature, landscapes etc. This extrapolation of the experts predictions is simply an example. On surfaces, she predicts dark wood with glass and stainless steel. The dark wood corresponds somewhat with Jenkins predictions for the dominance of walnut. High-gloss kitchens are also predicted by Geismann. This doesnt preclude the use of graphics but it does suggest a focus on colour rather than graphic. This jars slightly with Jenkins predictions for low gloss lacquers.

2.8 Conclusion
The analysis of export and consumption figures for furniture generally in section 2.2 above shows that the Irish furniture retail market is very small. The UK market is similar in style but Irish designers and manufacturers have not broken significantly into the market; the UK importing less than 1% of their furniture from Ireland. Other European markets are also very significant and easy to access but from the figures analysed, virtually no Irish furniture is exported to these markets.

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Focusing on Graphic Furniture, there were some notable examples, some cited above but from all the sources searched, only a handful were found. Of those that were found, most were designer or one-off pieces - relatively expensive and not available in the more easily accessible shops. There is therefore, a level of exclusivity to them. One recent exception is the Billy bookcase limited edition but this is now off the market. The reasons for the transience of this product as discussed in section 2.6, is uncertain but there is no doubt about the high volumes that sold in a short period of time.

A similar situation was observed from the two mainland European fairs analysed: Graphic Furniture is not at the leading edge of furniture trends at these shows. Splashes of graphic are used on accessories but even then, with restraint.

Two conclusions can be made from this chapter and they are not necessarily conflicting: There is very little graphic furniture on the market because it is not widely appreciated, or Because there is so little graphic furniture on the market, there may be niche opportunities. The following chapter uses industry experts to further assess the market and identify suitable uses for graphics on furniture.

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42

3 Industry Experts
3.1 Introduction
In addition to the analysis of the market in Chapter 2, the need was recognised for input from Industry Experts as to the potential for graphical furniture. This chapter details the method used to solicit the opinions from Industry Experts, summarises the results and extracts the key points from their discussion.

3.2 Method
It was recognised that discussion between experts could lead to more fruitful discussions than individual interviews but the locations of the individuals made impossible, a traditional focus group whereby the topic would be discussed between the experts which would be steered by the researcher. Another issue was predicted: These would be experienced and opinionated professionals, and the researchers inexperience could allow such a discussion to get off topic so a method was sought of structuring and directing the discussions. The Delphi Method was suggested and researched for this purpose, and an online forum was sought in through which to conduct the research.

The Delphi Method is a method of forecasting future scenarios (Gordon, et al., 2006 p. 321) and is commonly used in planning for the future and decision making. Traditionally, this is a series of two or more rounds of questions asked of a team of experts. Experts are chosen for their particular expertise in an aspect of the decision at hand. Iqbal and Pipon-Young talk about the choice of panellists, emphasising the need for expertise but acknowledging the possibility of expertise through experience (Iqbal, et al., 2009 p. 599). In a traditional Delphi, experts would answer the first set of questions and submit their answers. Questions should be left as open-ended as possible and ideally encouraging the panellists to brainstorm. The person conducting the Delphi would collate the results from round one and identify the key points and use this to generate the next round of proposals or questions for the panel of experts (Iqbal, et al., 2009 p. 598). While brainstorming is key to the first round, the second round is suggested to require more work in presenting the key points with, typically a quantitative means of presenting the key points... a typical format might be to what extent do you agree with the following statement:. A subsequent round would present the mean of each of these quantitative questions and ask participants to consider their own position in comparison to the mean (Iqbal, et al., 2009 p. 600). 43

This process is aimed at identifying consensus among the participants if any is possible. However, consensus is not a requirement and considerable value is obtained from the ideas generated without consensus (Gordon, et al., 2006 p. 322). To execute the Delphi for this research, the structure was first decided. Both sources advise that to use a Delphi to take the temperature of a subject, rather than to strive for consensus, that two rounds were acceptable: The initial brainstorming questions and a second to give the panellists the opportunity to reconsider their initial responses in light of any consensus from round one.

Experts were chosen from a range of relevant fields within the furniture and design fields. An Irish manufacturer with an interest in new products. Aisling Hurley MD of Teamwoodcraft. An Irish managing director from a large furniture retail chain with an interest in European markets. Liam Dileen, MD of EZ Living. An Irish Furniture designer, trained in London, Charles OToole of Charles Furniture A UK retail and trends expert who summarised the 2010 Milan Furniture fair to a conference of Irish furniture professions. John Jenkins An Irish Graphic Designer, Colin Farmer of Unthink Graphic Design Dublin, An Irish Graphic Designer, Conor Nolan of Conor and David graphic design, Dublin.

Two other designers were invited to participate but were unable to do so. Also Dara OFlynn was identified as another suitable panellist as a prominent design and interiors journalist with the Sunday Times and former House and Home editor, but contact information was not available. The panel has two graphic designers the second was recommended as a substitute by a declining designer. Liam Dileen requested the inclusion of more international perspectives but none were identified. The value of a broader spread of the nationalities is acknowledged.

The use of an online forum was set up to allow the participants to contribute remotely and asynchronously and thereby allowing them to contribute when their schedules allowed while still allowing access to previous comments of other panellists and the facility to continue the discussion. This open almost real-time facility to contribute is not the traditional method of conducting a Delphi study but is closer to a newer form of Delphi created by Gordon and Pease. 44

Several survey tools were assessed for suitability including Survey Monkey (Survey Monkey), Surveylet (Calibrum Corporation, 2010) and Zoomerang (Zoomerang). These would all be suitable to conduct a traditional Delphi but they did not provide the facility to conduct group discussion so Google Groups was chosen. One of the key requirements of the Delphi Technique was that panellists would answer anonymously. The reason for this is not specified in the papers studied but was reasoned allow panellists the freedom to express radical opinions without being frowned upon personally by professionals from their own industry. It could allow more open discussions. To achieve this anonymity however, anonymous emails were needed as Google Groups does not hide email addresses. These were set up but it was acknowledged that regular checking of a new email address was not a realistic expectation for busy professionals. The email addresses were set up, instructions clearly laid out and the questions posed. To overcome the difficulty with communications, contributions were compiled into a digest on any day a new contribution was made and these were sent to the panellists personal email addresses with reminders to contribute if the hadnt done so.

Initial one to one discussions with the panellists yielded interesting opinions in themselves as participants were for the most part, enthusiastic. After this initial enthusiasm and a couple of contributions, participation waned and weeks went by without contribution. This was despite regular requests for participation. This is understandable as all contributors are extremely busy especially considering current economic pressures. In the end, all panellists contributed yielding some interesting opinions and indeed some consensus, although the second round died. Though this is not ideal, as the mentioned earlier, the literature attributes value to the ideas generated.

3.3 Results
In compiling the first round, an initial list of six questions was narrowed down to two with the others held back for later direction of the discussion. These Questions are stated later in this section, preceding summaries of the responses.

It quickly became obvious that the Experts dived into the first question and expounded their thoughts, not just on the question at hand but on Graphic Furniture in general. Having spent

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so much time on the first question, they were then less enthusiastic about question 2 and the responses reflect this. A full transcript of the discussion is provided in the Appendix, p103. The following is a summary of their responses (without comment or evaluation) with tags afterwards listing the experts who corroborated

Question 1: Graphics in the form of pattern are an integral part of much upholstered furniture and in recent years, patterned upholstery has been very popular. Patterns and other graphics have also been used on many other fashion-led products in recent years - clothing, soft furnishing, tableware - to name a few. These strong trends have not carried over to solid furnishings. Why do you think this might be? Summary of responses: Due to the recession, many people are much slower to spend their money but there are always people with money willing to spend it on unusual design. EX1 When it comes to handing over money, people care about immediate outlay, buying what satisfies a need right now without consideration for durability, sustainability or local employment. EX1, EX2, People appreciate unusual/trendy products but are not, in Ireland at least, unwilling to pay for it. EX1, Well made furniture is typically expensive and outlives fashion trends so to apply graphics ornament would be to date the product. Soft furnishings and other home accessories are more cheaply changed. People are less likely to stick their neck out on something that will last. EX4, EX6, EX2, EX3, EX5, EX1 Pattern is a good way to hide inferior materials. EX6 Consumers Buy with their eyes and rarely think about lifespan until its too late. EX6, EX2 Good design should not need to be adorned. There is honesty and inherent beauty in highlighting the raw materials. EX6, EX3 For people to buy graphic furniture, retailers need to put it on the floor, Magazines need to promote it, and show-houses need to show it in its best form. EX2 Graphic furniture historically was more like artwork and was expensive because of the craftsmanship involved. It is still expensive to apply traditional graphic techniques to furniture. EX3 Its about cost, its cheaper to print and weave fabric. EX3 46

Question 2: People may have preconceptions of graphically enhanced furniture. As with all products, this will vary with the function of the furniture, the consumer's demographic, international location as well as broader social contexts such as economic recession, ecoawareness. With this in mind, what markets might now exist for the graphical enhancement of Furniture? Summary of responses: Ireland alone is too small to support unusual furniture. EX, EX2 Product must be market specific. EX1, EX2 Not the childrens market. EX1 Yes, the childrens market. EX6 Graphic should be meaningful. EX6, EX2, EX3, EX5 Graphics for aesthetic purposes reflect a manufacturer that intends products to have a short lifespan. EX6 Furniture improvement/ up-cycling / recycling services are on the increase with fresh graphic ornament being widely used. This seems to give an old piece a new lease of life. EX4, EX5 Branding at retail outlets and events. EX5 Local/Small-scale makers/designers developing a unique style or making a statement... One-offs. EX5 The idea of change could be incorporated into solid-furniture. EX4

3.4 Analysis of Results

This section comments on the results, highlighting the key findings and discussing the conflicts of opinion. It begins with the replies to question 1among which, one concept became the clear consensus: Soft furnishings and other home accessories are cheaply changed. People are less likely to stick their neck out on something that will last. Traditionally Furniture lasts longer than transient fashions. Application of image or pattern tends to date a piece to a particular time or fashion. In one way or another, this sentiment figures in all responses. There are other points made that are listed separately above but really, can be combined with this idea. Expert 6 expands to say that the very fact that graphics would be applied to furniture might suggest that the furniture is intended to have a 47

short lifespan before being discarded. From an ecological/sustainability point of view, this approach to design and manufacture would be unethical.

It is clear that all experts agree that well made solid furniture endures and is expensive to replace, so should not be tied to a transient fashion. However, Experts 2 and 6 also acknowledge that consumers buy with their eyes without consideration for longevity. This acknowledgement conflicts with the original idea. The truth may lie in between some people buy for now and for fashion, other buy with consideration - for longevity, quality and overall value for money. The examples of graphic furniture cited in chapter 1 in particular, were considered as further arguments against this first point but this argument was discarded as these were special, one off pieces which were made or designed by prominent designers of the time and because of the labour involved, they would have been few and expensive. Hence while they are seen as examples of haut couture of the time, they cannot realistically be compared to modern affordable furniture.

Some of the other responses to question 1 concern the cost to produce graphics. Certainly, graphics can be produced cheaply. This can be seen on cheap wood-effect furniture and on laminate flooring. While the pattern is wood, it is still a man-made pattern and could just as easily be a chintz pattern or a photographic print. However, production of quality, durable graphics using the traditional techniques seen in much of chapter 1, is expensive. The highest quality finish of the print techniques described in the next chapter is printing to High Pressure Laminate (think of Formica). This is durable, as can be seen on kitchen tables from the 1950s and 1960s. However, at about 200 per sheet of printed material, even this modern material is quite expensive. Essentially quality graphics are expensive to create.

The experts pointed out that there is always a high-end market with some wealthy people willing to spend money on works of art or excellent design. The opinion that good design does not need to be adorned is a valid Modernist opinion with which lovers of Art Deco Lacquered furniture could disagree. Similarly, the opinion that natural wood is too beautiful to disguise is valid but simply an opinion. Some woods are uninspiring and some products would only be successful if made from less attractive man-made board. On this material, as one expert pointed out, graphic ornament might be a useful disguise. 48

The results for Question 2 have not formed such a unanimous consensus. However, one a strong concept does emerge: Four contributors agreed on one point: A graphic on furniture must be meaningful or have value other than decoration. Each expert had a different slant on what this meaning should be. o Expert 3 came to this conclusion by analysing historical pieces, and observed that some of the graphical pieces discussed in Chapter 1 were not adorned for decoration but for religious beliefs or demonstrations of wealth and power. Given the elaboration of some 17th and 18th century pieces, this is a credible starting point. o Expert 6 suggests educational childrens furniture or way-finding furniture o Expert 2 believes the graphic should be relevant to the furniture and later suggests that this could be based upon culture and tradition, with the example of Chinese writing on Chinese furniture or simple floral designs on French furniture. These are not relevant to the function but, at least in the French case, the pattern is not just any decoration but one based upon traditional and enduring French tastes. o Expert 5 suggests that the graphic should tell a story and describes how it could be literal, as in branding for retail outlets and events, or to appeal to the tourism market in Ireland or more creatively, small-scale furniture makers could use graphics to tell a story to reinforce their personal style or make a personal statement. The key to this suggestion is that none of the proposed motivations are purely aesthetic. The suggestion of Experts 4 and 5 that Furniture up-cycling or recycling as a use for graphics could also be categorised under this broad concept of meaningful graphics The last key point from question 2 is that graphics should be market specific if used. Two suggestions specifically refer to Ireland as being too small a target market and there is some disagreement on whether childrens furniture might be a potential market. There are further specifics about French flowers and modern graphics for the Italian market. These are all valid suggestions but each individual market opportunity would need focused market research. The reader is reminded that the purpose of the Delphi/focus group is to generate ideas from consensus and discrepancy but the group does not have the scope to prove these markets. 49

3.5 Other Applications

There are several possible applications for graphic furniture that are only briefly mentioned or do not feature at all in the expert discussion. 1) The use of graphics on childrens furniture was only briefly touched by two contributors. One expert believed it was not a very strong market based on the 2) XXXXXXXXXXX 3) In modern interiors, individuality is sought. The use of a graphic piece could be an accent in an otherwise conservative interior. 4) Ethnic Furniture

3.6 Conclusion
There are two strong outcomes from this non-traditional Delphi. 1) Quality solid furniture typically outlasts transient fashions so to embellish such furniture with decorative graphics would be to potentially shorten its lifespan. One corollary might be that cheap disposable fashionable furniture would be an acceptable use of graphics but this is not specifically advocated by the group. 2) The selection of graphics for furniture must be meaningful. Some possible avenues for this are suggested by the group.

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4 Graphic application techniques

4.1 Introduction
There are a wide range of techniques that may be used to apply graphics to furniture. These range from the labour intensive traditional techniques identified in the history research of Chapter 1, to automated wood-effect printing to vast quantities of sheet material for low-cost furniture and flooring. This chapter explains many of these techniques and discusses their strengths and weaknesses and suitability of use for on furniture. Explanation of traditional techniques such as painting, marquetry and lacquering are not described as literature is readily available. Similarly, automated wood processing techniques such as CNC carving or Laser Etching, though legitimate methods of applying graphic content, are outside the scope. Hence, this chapter discusses methods of printing or of applying printed graphics.

4.2 Techniques
Three categories of method have been found and all the methods outlined below fall into one of these categories: Direct Printing. This is where the printing process is applied directly to the substrate rather than to a membrane. Ink Transfer: This is where the ink is transferred from a pre-printed membrane to the substrate but the film itself is removed. Membrane adhesion. In these processes a pre-printed membrane is applied to the substrate with glue.

Screen Printing: Screen printing is an old and straightforward technique where a fine mesh is used to support an ink blocking mask. Siobhan Piercy, Head of Fine Art Printing at GMIT (2010, per demonstration, Nov.) explained the modern process where the screen is a very fine metal mesh. The fine mesh is covered with a UV-curable masking fluid onto which UV light is then projected through a masking-image of black on acetate. The UV light shining through the acetate cures the masking fluid while the black areas protect some fluid from curing. The uncured areas are then washed off, leaving the inverse of the masking image. This mask is then laid over the substrate (usually paper or fabric and a single colour of ink is scraped over the mask to reproduce the original masking image on the substrate. Colours can be layered, using complimentary masks to create more complex images. Screen printing can also be a high volume process but this requires specialised automation machinery. For low volume 52

production, inks are expensive. Piercy recommended inks manufactured by Sericol but had never herself investigated suitability to wood-based material and so could not advise on this. Further research on screen printing inks identified inks by Sericol (now owned by Fujifilm). Colorstar CS, Seristar SX and Colorjet CO were identified from their online documentation and consultation with Sean Connolly of Fujifilm Graphic Systems Division confirmed that these work very well for wood. They can be applied directly to wood or MDF without pretreatment but sealing the substrate first will yield a more vibrant print as less ink will be absorbed into the substrate. Connolly could not comment on the performance of specific wood-work industry sealers and top-coats but said that solvent based lacquers should work fine.

Direct inkjet printing: Another direct-printing technique. There are large flatbed inkjet printers on the market capable of printing to a 2440mm x 1220mm sheet. One example of this is the JETI 1224 UV True Flatbed (AGFA, 2010). This is capable of quite high definition prints of 1200dpi (compared to standard desktop inkjet-printer resolution of about 300 x 300dpi or desktop photo-printers which have similar resolution). Types of media suggested in the technical specifications are Reinforced vinyl, pressure sensitive vinyl, canvas, fabrics, foam board, corrugated board, lenticular, tile, drywall, glass, sheet metal, paper and more. The and more can in theory include wood-based sheet material but the company does not make this suggestion.

Other characteristics relevant to wood-based material include: Maximum height of substrate that can be handled: 50mm. This is adequate for standard sheet material gauges. Medite for example produces up to 45mm MDF (Medite, 2006). Light fastness of the ink: UV Inks will last 1-2 years depending on location but adding water based topcoat varnish will prolong outdoor life. This is not an ideal level of durability for furniture but refers to out-door exposure. In the only to one ink for one printer. As will be discussed later, it does not tally with the light fastness testing conducted as part of this work which used a similar printer. Print Speeds: Up to 130m2/hr. This equates to 43 full sheets per hour but it does not account for loading and unloading times, which will vary based on such variables as handling equipment used, the type of substrate, the size of substrate and operator competence. 53

Roller-printing: This direct printing technique is achieved with rollers with an image or an element of the element of the image printed to each roller in a different coloured ink. The roller transfers the wet ink to the medium as the medium passes below. If several rollers are used, then between each image layer, the ink is cured by UV light. This process was observed in the Swedewood high volume furniture factory in Poland. It was used to apply wood-effect prints to the least expensive of IKEAs furniture - in this case, IKEAs Lack range. The print was actually applied to the finished components. This method is most suited to very high volume pattern printing where image quality is not critical. Decal, Wet transfer: Also known as Water Slide. This technique was also described by Piercy and is also described in Digital Art Studio (Schminke, et al., 2004 p. 32). The descriptions were aimed at craft users rather than furniture manufactures so the printers recommended are quite small. Inks should be pigment based as this improves light fastness. Larger format printing can be done by the type of oversized printers usually used by professional sign-printing shops but this removes control of the ink from the craftspersons control. Also, from observation of the technique as demonstrated by Piercy, transfers are wet and limp so larger transfers would be very difficult to handle. After application, the water should be squeegeed out from under the print. This works on non-porous, smooth surfaces such as ceramics but on wood, this can lead to creases High resolution and speed are not critical for Wet transfer and straight paper-path printers reduce the chance of the thick treated paper jamming in the spool (Schminke, et al., 2004 p. 33). The importance of printer choice was evident from Piercys demonstration when the transfer paper jammed in her desktop printers. Recommended printers (Schminke, et al., 2004) are Epson Stylus Pro 4000 and for better clearance, the Encad 880. Transfer paper is available from print supply companies such as The Magic Touch. The The wet print is slid across the substrate where it adheres as it dries. The best explanation of the physical transfer is best seen through demonstration or can be seen on YouTube The method is not seen as ideal for wood based substrates, particularly MDF as the presence of moisture can cause localised swelling and create defects or inconsistencies on the surface.

Heat transfer: As a dry process, this is more suitable for wood based material. The printing process is the same as the wet-slide process but the properties of the transfer paper are different. These can be purchased online from www.themagictouch.ie. The transfer process differs as it happens in a heat press; considerable heat and pressure is required. Manual 54

techniques such as the use of a domestic iron yield patchy results. This technique is commonly used for t-shirt prints so works quite well on porous surfaces. The process needs a base coat of acrylic. From observation of the process, it takes lacquer well on the second coat. As with many of these techniques however, the lacquer sits on top of the film rather than being absorbed into the wood grain. Hence the bond between lacquer and substrate may not be very durable.

Solvent Transfer: A particular clear solvent is brushed onto the substrate and a pre-printed film placed over it. The film is pressed lightly with a roller. After a short amount of time, the ink is dissolved into the solvent, thereby released from the film and absorbed into the substrate. One of the authors of Digital Art Studio, Bonnie Lhotka demonstrates this technique as well as the required materials on her website Digital Art Studio Seminars (Lhotka, 2009). This method requires a specific release agent and the ability to print to a thicker-than-paper film but otherwise is inexpensive. As the ink is absorbed into the wood, lacquer can adheres fully to the wood so physical durability depends on the finish used. Light fastness depends on the properties of the ink used. This can usually be found in ink cartridge manufacturers technical documentation.

Paper Wrapping: This is a generic name for methods of applying pre-printed melamineimpregnated paper to sheet material. It is commonly seen on in-expensive cabinetry as a method of imitating wood grain and real veneer and from this application, it has developed a reputation as a poor quality finish as it chips easily and does not have a luxurious feel. However, it is also used on laminate flooring where the finish is durable. Indeed, Kronopol a Polish flooring manufacturer sells it with up to a 25 year warranty. In a visit to the company, the process was observed: Wood-grain effect was pre-printed onto huge rolls of paper. The paper was fed on rollers through a vat of liquid melamine resin and cured as it moved. The paper was then sandwiched between a high density fibreboard substrate and a layer of fine carborundum impregnated paper. Under pressure and heat the melamine resin bonded carborundum paper and pre-printed paper to the substrate. Carborundum, or Silicon carbide, is a very hard compound commonly used as an abrasive. It is this hard material that gives the melamine and the paper their durability.

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The equipment to manufacture at this volume is expensive but melamine resin is commercially available in smaller quantities and heat and pressure are then needed to bond and cure the sheet.

High Pressure Laminate: This is a variation on the paper wrapping process. High pressure laminate is manufactured by pressing melamine impregnated (usually printed) paper sheets over a phenolic impregnated kraft paper core at pressures of over 1000 psi and temperatures of approximately 300 degrees F (149 degrees C) (ABET Inc, 2010). Sheets can be thin enough to act as a skin for other substrates or thick enough to be structural. For application to substrates, the back face is sanded to facilitate bonding. Applications suggested by one manufacturer, Abet Laminati, include counter-tops, table tops, residential and commercial furniture, case goods, store fixtures, and work stations, wall panels, cabinet walls, doors, toilet partitions, elevator interiors, front panels of workstations in hospitals, restaurants, retail stores, and airports. Formica is another manufacturer. The durability and quality of finish of Formica is widely recognised as it has been quite popular on furniture since the 1960s and 1970s. Now Formica have teamed up with Surface View, a supplier of graphic murals and owners of a large collection of attractive images and the result: Formica sheets can be printed with high quality images, either from the Surface View collection, or bespoke graphics. These are then adhered with contact adhesive to the substrate. A backing skin is also required to balance the panel. Most glues are suitable, including PVA, Urea Formaldehyde and Contact Adhesive (Formica, 2010). Formica is generally a relatively expensive material at about 80stg per sheet but the custom printed material is 200 for a 3.05m x 1.3m sheet for a batch of less than 10 and 149 per sheet for larger orders.

Vinyl Wrapping: This is another process which applies a pre-printed membrane to a substrate. This time, pre-printed Polyvinyl Chloride (vinyl) is applied to the substrate. Vinyl wrapping is very common in advertising, commonly used on commercial vehicle signage and retail displays. Many sign-printers offer this type of service. A finer grade is also very widely used on decorative panels. The properties of vinyl mean that it can stretch in a heated membrane press to take the shape of contours and mouldings machined into otherwise flat panels. The process of application with an industrial heated membrane press was observed at the W10 trade show in November 2010. Vinyl is pre-printed and pre-treated with adhesive and supplied on a roll. It is simply draped over the work pieces in the press. The heat softens the vinyl and adhesive while the vacuum forces the vinyl into the contours of the workpiece. 56

Figure 4-1 Section through panel with finished thermo transfer foil

Figure 4-1 shows a cross section of a panel treated this way. The base layer is vinyl in this case but can equally be paper as in the previous technique. The transparent film allows for texturing and the lacquer seals and protects the finished product.

Thermo transfer foil: This is similar to the heat transfer process described above but specifically designed for transfer to sheet material on an industrial scale. Sample of thermotransfer foil was obtained from Brother Machinery. This is an inexpensive process of printing. The quality depends on the quality of the original printed foil and the quality and texture of the topcoat applied and the quality and texture of the substrate. Similar to previous transfer methods, the ink is released from the printed foil under heat and pressure. On removal from the machine, the now-blank foil is discarded. At this stage, the ink is exposed and needs to be top-coated for protection. A section through this would look similar to Figure 4-1 but without the base-layer. The samples obtained were used as control samples for the testing conducted in the next chapter. These samples were lacquered by the manufacturer so these finished panels were placed alongside the 32 Inkjet samples of the light fastness test of Chapter 5. As this is a widely used process in industry, testing the longevity of the print its light fastness was expected to be a trivial operation. The ink proved to have a high level of light fastness but the lacquer topcoat yellowed considerably. This is a common problem with many types of lacquer and varnish and is also discussed in the following chapter, but it should be noted that this is a property of the lacquer and not of the print that it protects. The same yellowing would occur on any similarly coated substrate.

DIY techniques Two simple transfer methods were tried by informal experiment. 57

Photocopy transfer is a quick and straightforward technique for applying black toner to wood. The black toner deposited on the photocopy is released with heat to the substrate. Its durability again depends on the durability of the topcoat. As per research conducted by Hillcoat-Imanishi (Hillcoat-Imanishi, 1996), Photocopy toner creates quite a lightfast reproduction. During informal tests, photocopied sheets were pressed on with an iron to various treatments of MDF. In all but the bare MDF, the paper became stuck and had to be peeled back. Results might be improved through practice but it is not reliable enough to be used for high-quality furniture, especially over larger areas. It could be a convenient way of applying small details but generally, is not recommended.

Similar results were obtained by applying photographs, and coloured inkjet prints. These techniques were not successful but they do highlight the need for a release agent, which dissolve the pigment, releasing it from the original backing and bonding it to the wood.

4.3 Conclusion
Many techniques can be used to apply graphics. Anywhere wood-effect or faux wood-grain is seen, (with the possible exception of the roller-printing observed at Swedewood and such hand techniques as Scumbling), Images or patterns can be supplanted. The choice of technique is particular to the requirement: Attractive, exclusive labour intensive (expensive), traditional techniques such as painting, lacquering and inlay. Expensive high quality, low-volume durable HPL prints of Surface view, Lower durability, high-volume, inexpensive paper foil wrapping techniques Compromise in quality, volume and cost of vinyl wrapping.

The technique of inkjet printing direct to wood based sheet material is not very widely written about. The main sources of information are the technical information of equipment manufacturers and the advice of professional Printers. Examples of the process in consumer products are not readily available and because of this shortage of information and examples, the technique was selected for experiment. The next chapter addresses this technique.

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5 Investigation of Direct Inkjet Technique

5.1 Introduction
Most of the graphic application techniques have been tried and tested on comparable products; for example, vinyl- and foil-wrapping is widely used on furniture to varying degrees of durability - even durable enough to be used on laminate flooring; there are screenprinting inks on the market which are recommended by the manufacturer for use on paper and board and indeed, there are examples of furniture on the market that use this method; smaller graphic details particularly on amateur crafts and on many childrens wooden toys or childrens furniture tend to use Decals. So even if they havent all been scientifically tested for the exact purpose of use on wood based products, they have been tested through use.

With a general knowledge of furniture finishing quality and durability issues, and having conducted background research on printing quality and durability issues, properties were identified that could lead to poor quality and low durability: Light fastness: The resistance of the finished print medium to fading or discolouration due to exposure to light. Reaction of finish with print medium: As is common with wood finishing, chemical reactions between components of finishes (lacquers, oils, paints etc.), of pigments (stains, dyes, inks etc.), of chemicals in the wood itself (tannins and resins) and even components of the atmosphere, can lead to problems with finish quality. Hence, a variety of finishes should be tested. Physical durability to scratching, abrasion, heat and moisture. It was predicted that the physical properties would closely match the properties of the top-coat finish, assuming there was no adverse reaction as described in the previous paragraph and assuming that the finish actually cured fully and adhered to the print underneath. Workability. As the intention is to use sheet material to make furniture, the effect of tooling on the print must be assessed, specifically on the edges.

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5.2 Light fastness

Inks are not usually required to last forever, or in many cases, not even for 10 years. Think of newspapers, magazines and posters which have faded in the sun. Permanence depends on the conditions as well as the materials so outside a controlled environment, the term is not very meaningful (Gottsegen, 1993 p. p115), hence the need for classification of the light fastness of a medium through testing.

An exact British Standard has not been written for testing ink on wood-based substrates but comparable standards can be adapted to obtain meaningful results. For example, British Standard BS ISO 12040:1997 prescribes the use of filtered xenon arc light to test Light fastness of prints and printed inks. The intention behind these is printing to paper substrates. However, the porous nature of MDF and Plywood should mean there would be significant similarities. However, the xenon arc apparatus was not available - in fact, all current British Standard tests for Light fastness now prescribe the use of filtered xenon arc light. For this reason a comparable but lower-tech standard was sought and several found in The Painters Handbook (Gottsegen, 1993 pp. 125-131):

The simplest test required application of the colour medium to 25mm x 100mm panels of the target substrate. The panels should then be halved into two panels of 25mm x 50mm. One half is stored in darkness while the other is exposed to direct sunlight. This simple test procedure recommends sunlight through a south-facing window for maximum intensity. Gottsegen lists the limitations of this test. There is now way to rate the results as the tested sample is simply tested against the non-tested sample rather than a standard; there is no measure of the actual light exposure to compare more typical conditions; there is no way to measure or regulate other conditions such as temperature and moisture. There is no way to isolate the effects of the test on the ink from the effects on the substrate.

At the most scientific end of the scale, British Standard BS ISO 12040:1997 as mentioned above, the use of filtered xenon arc light allows a high degree of consistency and control to the test. The lights themselves are certified to British Standards. Some such apparatus are equipped with timing units to control the length of exposure to this arc-light while some use light monitors designed to switch the test off, as soon as the specified radiant exposure (or the

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level of UV light to which the specimens have been exposed) has been achieved. The specimens should then be compared to unexposed sections of the same specimens.

In the precursor of this xenon-arc test, a more accessible but still quite controlled test was prescribed by British Standards. The procedure for this test is detailed by Gottsegen and this is process that was followed in this work.

5.2.1 How to perform a Light fastness test The test as interpreted by Gottsegen (Gottsegen, 1993 pp. PP 129-131) prescribes exposure to natural light to exercise the colorants light fastness. However, some modifications were deemed appropriate and these are documented in the procedure below. 5.2.1.1 Materials British Blue-Wool Textile Fading Cards Fading cards could not be sourced but segments of BS Blue-Wool were purchased from British test equipment supplier Equiptex. These samples are equivalent to Blue Wool Textile Fading Cards, but without being glued to card. A complete set of Blue-Wool comprises eight samples, each dyed with a different blue dye of known light fastness. Standard no.1 (BW1) is the least light fast, fading in a matter of weeks or months, while Standard no.8 (BS8) - the most light fast, is classed as archival which practically speaking, under reasonable conditions is considered permanent. Each incremental Standard number takes twice as long to fade as the previous Standard.

Support for the material being tested. Gottsegens test and the British standard on which it is based specify a test of inks, dyes and pigments applied to paper. The support referred to, is the substrate or simply, the paper to which the colourants are applied. It is prescribed to be stable, white, non-yellowing and of known composition. Such prescription is necessary to eliminate the variable of the substrate from the test. However, the objective of the test to be conducted here is not the ink (which has been tested for purpose by the manufacturer) but the performance of the ink as applied to this non-prescribed substrate. So, while we can describe the material as stable (plywood and MDF being among the most stable of wood-based materials), the other characteristics prescribed, Whiteness and Non-Yellowing are both unknown and, because of their innate colour, irrelevant in their natural form. Of course, the use of a white primer is an option. 62

Coloured Materials to be tested: This referred to the inks themselves - Nazdar-Lyson UV inks, as used by the Printer. These are described further in section 5.2.1.2 under the paragraph Printing onto treated substrates.

Stiff Backboard: To which the samples be tested would be attached assuming they were paper samples but in this case, the substrate itself is stiff enough. Back-board was needed however for the Blue Wool which was battened to an MDF substrate; gluing these samples could affect the performance of the dyes.

Stiff Cover: Half of each sample was to be covered from light. Contrary to the procedure prescribed, where the covered half was blocked from the light only by stiff card or battens, it was decided to take one third of each sample, label each and store them in a dark box in the same room, completely eliminating the chance for light exposure.

UV Light Box: As alluded above, natural light exposure was prescribed by Gottsegen but UV lights were chosen in preference, to speed up the process. The reasoning behind this is the operation of Blue Wool as a control and a measure of the amount of exposure, the actual period over which an amount of UV exposure occurred was not seen as critical.

The Test Box: Two strip-light fittings, each holding 2 x Philips F40 UVB fluorescent lamps, were installed in a simple box of MDF. The front panel of the box was hinged for access. Holes were provided in the side panels towards the tops and bottoms to allow airflow to keep the box relatively cool. A shelf was installed at an appropriate height to position the samples 120mm below the lamps. This height was recommended by Dr. V. Wilson in (Coyne p. P.38)

Thermometer: In the absence of a prescribed ideal temperature, it was decided to keep the test apparatus to a temperature at least in the region of normal indoor temperatures. It was expected that heat would build up in the closed box with four fluorescent lamps but the steady state temperature the apparatus would reach was unknown. The lamps were switched on in the sealed box, 63

empty except for a digital thermometer. After 6 hours, the box had reached 32C. After two more days it was obvious that this was the stable temperature. To reduce the temperature, holes were drilled and the new stable temperature found to be 28C. The installation of a small fan to further reduce the temperature was considered but deemed unnecessary. While 28C is uncommon in Ireland, it is a reasonable temperature in which furniture might withstand. The thermometer was to stay in the box throughout the test for monitoring purposes.

Hygrometer: Gottsegen does not prescribe a required to be maintained. Though the effect of moisture and humidity is acknowledged (Sunlight, UV and Accellerated Weathering, 1987 p. p2), it is the cycling of humidity levels that is most effective. Brennan and Fedor suggest that keeping humidity constant during testing reduces their effect on the result so the results can be attributed more accurately to the exposure to UV light. Hence, the hygrometer meter should remain in the test box to monitor humidity in the box.

Prepared Test Specimens: The Test Specimens were an important part of the Test and so are described in the next section. The process for their preparation was not specified in any Standard so the process was based on a general knowledge of wood finishes and discussions with the Printer on the characteristics of the printer and the ink. 5.2.1.2 Preparation of Test Specimens: Substrate Two substrates were chosen. Poplar ply because if successful, it will prove the process for solid wood also. Poplar was chosen above Birch for two reasons cost and, having a lower fibre density and therefore a more porous surface than most hardwoods, would be a tougher surface on which to print. Poplar was chosen over construction ply for its stability. Construction grade plywood has a greater tendency to bow. The sheet had to remain very flat to avoid hitting the print heads. The second substrate was MDF because it is less expensive, very widely used and quite consistent and is the most similar to paper its fibrous make-up. The Printer (B. Crudden, 2010, per conversation, December) claimed that the smallest size sheet that could be printed was 1220mm x 1220mm, but was not forthcoming on the reason for this. Printing this size of

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sheet would cost 50 so trial runs would be expensive. One such sheet of Poplar ply and one of MDF was sanded to 220-grit in preparation for sealing, or Primary Treatment.

Primary Treatments From discussions with the Printer, it became obvious that there was no easily available recommended treatment for the substrate. It was therefore necessary to test treatments and top-coats and their best combinations. Four methods of base treatment were chosen: White Primer, coated (sprayed), sanded and re-coated. It was believed that the provision of a white base would allow for truer colour reproduction when printed. Two coats were used to create a good seal. The primer was an off-the-shelf product and not designed to be printed upon but proving the suitability of cheap, readily available products is desirable. Water-based Lacquer, sealed (sprayed), cut back and top-coated. Increasingly commonly used for environmental and regulatory reasons but thought by some finish experts not to achieve the same quality of finish. This is a generic type of finish so the test will not cover every brand but will be a good general indicator. Solvent-based Lacquer, sealed (sprayed), cut back and top-coated. A very common finish in the woodwork industry. Similarly, as a generic type, its success will only be an indicator. Acrylic based varnish, brushed on, three coats, no sanding. This varnish was suggested by the Printer so was included. It is not widely used in the woodwork industry but may be more compatible with the ink. Each of the four primary treatments was applied in a strip across both the ply and the MDF as shown in Figure 5-1

Figure 5-1 Position of base coats on both substrates (MDF and Poplar Ply)

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The position of each treatment on the sheets was recorded on the back of the sheet to avoid ambiguity later.

Printing onto treated substrates The printer used was an Agfa Anapurna XL printer for wide format printing, capable of printing to a sheet of 2540mm x 3000mm(AGFA, 2010)2010. This flat-bed printer supports the sheet of rigid material while a motorised carriage controls the movement of the print head.

The capability of the printer determines to a large extent, the resolution of the image but the quality, durability and light fastness of the colour are determined more so by the properties of the ink and the substrate. The inks used for these prints were Nazdar-Lyson UV inks. A two year warranty is provided by the manufacturer for outdoor exposure of the inks without treatment (Nazdar, 2010)2010. The use of UV resistant coatings will delay the fading process according to B. Crudden (2011). He recommended the use of acrylic varnish which doesnt have the same yellowing properties of other lacquers. This is reinforced by Gottsegen (1993 p. p108) where resistance to UV light is classed as Excellent, the best of varnishes tested in that analysis. The images were chosen for their vivid colours and for their size from available images on the Printers database. It will be discussed later why these were not ideal criteria for image selection.

The final prints covered the 1220mm x 1220mm panels with no margin. The quality of the prints was assessed at this stage. The print would be considered good quality for posters or large advertising but for furniture, the quality received was not good enough. Bands of variation in ink-coverage crossed the sheets, more prominent on dark colours. This was due to the printer mode selected by the Printer, using Production mode or Poster mode rather than Photo or Vector sign mode. The chosen mode consumes less ink but for furniture applications, Photo /Vector mode would be needed. The banding did not adversely affect testing which was concerned with the change in colour due to fading rather than the absolute colour. The prints were configured for printing to a white substrate. Hence, wherever the original images had white components, little or no ink was deposited. This left some clear areas where the Poplar Ply or MDF was visible. As with the Banding issue, this was not a 66

serious stumbling block as samples were chosen from areas with the most consistent coverage.

Top Coat treatment At this stage, on each substrate, four combinations of print with a base-treatment had been created. Similar to the undercoat, a specification for a topcoat which was compatible with the ink could not be found so testing of common topcoats was necessary. With the exception of white primer, the other three base treatments, Solvent Based Lacquer, Water Based Lacquer and Acrylic Based Varnish were applied as topcoats. They were applied in strips over the ink with a fourth strip left uncoated for testing purposes. The strips were oriented perpendicular to the base-coat strips, forming a grid of 16 samples combining each type of base-treatment with each type of top-coat.

The Samples The 16 samples on each sheet were then split up on a beam-saw. Care was taken to record on the back of each sample, the combination of coatings used and each sample was numbered. The information was then tabulated to an excel spreadsheet. Smaller samples measuring 120mm x 50mm were then cut from the larger samples. The size was not specified in Gottsegens description so a size was chosen which would allow all samples and the Blue Wool to fit directly underneath the lamps to ensure maximum and even exposure. The most colourful parts of each sample were specifically chosen to ensure the widest range of ink colours would be tested. These were cut on a table saw with no support used to reduce breakout. Each new 120x50 sample was marked again with the same sample-number as its parent sample. A visual description of the colour content of each sample was recorded with each sample-number. At this stage too, the quality of the cut was inspected for defects such as chipping and breakout. The quality of the cut was recorded with the sample-number. This would provide a guide as to the workability of the coatings. Each of the 32 Samples (16 on each substrate) had to be fixed securely and also be half covered to protect an area from the UV Light. Figure 5-2 best explains the assembly of the samples. The Strip of MDF is tacked to the edge of each sample to ensure security and a tight cover. TO further improve the tightness of the cover, a strip of thick black paper was layered between the MDF strip and the samples to fill any gaps or unevenness to keep the UV light from the shielded area.

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Figure 5-2 Sample clamping mechanism showing 16 samples on either side of the clamping strip.

Blue Wool Standard Preparation The samples were now ready to be tested but the Blue Wool had still to be prepared. Samples of each of the Blue Wool Standards were cut to 120mm x 50mm, matching the sample sizes and again, to fit directly underneath the lamps. Gottsegen (1993 p. p115) suggests the samples be taped or glued to a support layer but it was thought that such contact with unknown chemicals might affect the colour of the wool. For this reason, the wool samples were held firm, and partially covered by a batten which was tacked to the support board. Samples were battened at each end, covering 30mm at either end and exposing 60mm of the wool in the centre to ensure i) that the samples were secure, ii) that the exposed area was centrally located under the lamps and iii) to provide two transition lines between faded area and shielded area rather than the suggested single transition. The results will be described later but Figure 5-3, jumps ahead to the faded wool, simply to show how the ends of each sample were shielded and the centre strip was exposed, resulting in fading.

Figure 5-3 Blue Wool Standards shown after testing, arranged 8 to 1, left to right.

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5.2.1.3 Procedure The mounted Samples and Blue Wool strips were placed in the UV light box as shown in Figure 5-4. XXXXXXXXXXXXX Change the picture to include the Thermometer and Hygrometer

Figure 5-4 Section through Light Box showing sample positioning

The Thermometer and the Hygrometer were placed in the open space underneath the samples. The windowed, hinged front panel was screwed on and the windows covered to contain the UV light. As UV light can be harmful, a safety statement was drafted and accordingly, the apparatus was well signed for safety.

Gottsegen (1993 p. p131) states that the test is finished when a change is perceived in Blue Wool Sample 6 but also states that, to rate the colorants as Excellent, the test should be continued until BW7 and BW8 fade. He suggests that exposure to strong sunlight should cause BW6 to begin to fade anytime between six weeks and one year after first exposure but does not estimate a time for BW 7 and BW8. It can be extrapolated that, as each Blue Wool standard is twice as light fast as the preceding number, that this test could take up to 4 years in natural sunlight. Because of the uncertainty in this time range with no way to accurately compare the UV lamps to sunlight, the test was checked daily for change. For reference, the daily results are listed in Table 1 in the Appendix. Changes in the most sensitive Blue Wool samples were noticed after a day while a definite change in the samples was not observed until the third week. The test could have been stopped ambiguously at the end of the third week as BW6 had faded very slightly but there were only very slight changes in some samples and none in others so it was decided to leave the test continue until changes in BS 7 were definitively observed.

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5.3 Results and observations

5.3.1 Preliminary observations: The criteria for image selection for the test samples were found at this stage not to be ideal. At the time of printing, the significance of the print image was not acknowledged. The subject images were chosen for their vivid colours, for the presence of some detail and for their size. The weakness specifically, was the variation in detail and colour across the image making it difficult in some cases to classify the level of fading within the sample and to compare the fading between samples. Each Sample should have been identical. Hence, one single image should not have been used but a repeated image or formal pattern. Adjacent stripes of a rainbow of colours on each sample would have been a better choice. The stripes should have run the length of the sample so the fading line would run across the strips and be more easily discernable if present. The reaction of each individual colour would also have been apparent. Despite that, fading was obvious in most cases and it was possible to classify the levels of fading even if there was ambiguity in some cases. 5.3.2 Analysis of Fading The full results are listed in

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Appendix (ii). Visual Grading of Samples. At a first glance, the results seemed better than anticipated. As mentioned, BW7 had begun to fade. On inspection after the test, ambiguity was observed in BW8 so further inspection with good lighting, a high quality digital photograph and image enhancement in Photoshop (adjusting brightness, contrast, saturation and removing colours individually, a definite difference between the exposed and protected areas of the sample were observed. The processed images of BW8 and BW7 are shown below in Figure 5-5 and Figure 5-6 respectively. The techniques used in the processing did not create information but presented the colour information in a different way to highlight the edge if it existed. The changes in other samples are obvious from Figure 5-3 above.

Figure 5-5 Processed Image of BW8

Figure 5-6 Processed Image of BW7

The significance of these changes is explained clearly by Gottsegen (1993 p. p131). A Test Specimen that fades as much as BW1 should be classed has having Fugitive light fastness or only a very transient permanence of colour. An approximate lifespan for the classification is given as less than 20 years. BW2 and BW3 are similarly classed - the categories are broad. Specimens that match the fading of BW4 and BW5 indicate Fair light fastness and a lifespan of 20 to 100 years. BW6 is Very Good while matches for BW7 and BW8 indicate excellent light fastness and an approximate lifespan of more than 100 years. BW6 to BW8, Gottsegen says, indicate that the material is good enough to be exposed indoors in average lighting for 100 years or more.

So how do the tested samples compare? It can be interpreted from the Blue Wool results that the samples were exposed to over 100 years worth of normal indoor light. The level of normal light is ambiguous but it is reasonable to suggest that normal light would be the light in a typical museum, art gallery or exhibition room. This is recommended by to be up to 500lux (Neufert, et al., 2002 p. p143). The manufacturer stands over the ink for two years of outdoor light. Outdoor light in Ireland and the UK corresponds to a luminance of 5000 to

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20000lux. Neuter lists broad figures which can be broadly interpreted as follows: Daylight of, say 20,000lux has 40 times the light energy of normal 500lx indoor light. To relate that to the ink manufacturers warranty, 2 years of outdoor light would equate to about 80 years of 500lx indoor light. Figure 5-7 aggregates the 32 samples and the Blue Wool Standard to which each is classified. BW6 and BW7 are the dominant values. According to Gottsegens classifications listed above, this means that all but one of the 32 samples should have an approximate life span of 100 years or more in normal light.

Figure 5-7 Break down of BW equivalents of 32 tested samples

Considering the broad of Neuferts normal light (taken above as 500lx) and of daylight values (from 5000lx to 20000lx), these 100 year life spans are comparable to the estimated equivalence of the manufacturers warranty to 80 year indoor life.

5.3.3 Analysis of other Effects Compatibility of finish with ink: At no stage in the sample preparation was any reaction observed between any of the finishes or between the finishes and the ink. It can be stated with a high level of confidence that Acrylic varnish, Solvent based and Water based lacquers are compatible with the ink. However, each brand is different so testing should always be conducted for new combinations.

Effect of Finish on Light fastness. 72

There is no obvious impact from a first glance. Looking first at the top-coat and taking the mean Blue-Wool equivalent of the different top-coats, Solvent Based lacquered panels have the highest mean Blue-Wool equivalence at 7. Acrylic is next at 6.75 and Water based lacquer and No top-coat, both at 6.25. Again, due to the low volumes, these numbers are not very significant but they do prove that none of the coatings have disastrous effects on the light fastness of the print. It seemed less likely that the basecoat would have a significant effect of the light fastness. The primer had the highest Blue Wool equivalence of 7 while Water Based lacquer and Acrylic Varnish have a value of 6.5 and Solvent based lacquer had a mean value of 6.25. Again, these volumes dont provide statistically significant numbers to compare the basecoats but it does prove that they are all reasonably successful.

Effect of Material: It can be seen from Figure 5-8 that Poplar has more BW6 classifications than MDF and so, on the mean Blue Wool equivalence is lower for Poplar than for MDF but the number of samples is not statistically significant; essentially, there is no discernable difference.

Figure 5-8 Further breakdown by Material

5.4 Other properties

The sawn edges of each sample were inspected to assess the workability of the print with different finishes. To provide a means of assessing the quality of the finish, they were rated according to the amount of chipping or flaking along the sawn edges. They were rated 1 (poor), 3 (fair) and 5 (good). For each base-coat the ratings were summed. Primer and solvent-based lacquer summed to 28 while water-based and acrylic summed to 30. Considering the accuracy of the rating, all four base coats perform similarly at a saw blade. 73

For each Top coat, the ratings were independently summed. No-top coat and solvent based lacquer sum to 26 while Acrylic is better at 30 and water-based lacquer performs better again at 34.Again, while these numbers are not statistically significant, Water-based lacquer would be recommended for resistance to chipping at the edges.

Chipping of edges was then assessed by material by the same rating method. MDF summed to 48 while poplar ply summed to 68 a significant difference. Hence, poplar ply would be the recommended material from a machining point of view.

Now, the surface finish was assessed. Each sample was observed under a magnifying glass. All finishes were quite good. Under many of the finishes, slight ink ridges were observed. Because this was on some samples but not on others, the ink may have spread out differently on different finishes. No pattern was observed across finishes but on both MDF and Poplar, the most consistent finish was water-based basecoat with water-based topcoat. However, as mentioned in section 5.2.1.2, colours were more vivid with a primer base-coat. From discussions with the Printer, this was no surprise. The flatness of the primer may not have been perfect. This might contribute to the inconsistency of the finish. Between the other basecoats, while there might be differences in machining, the vividness of colours was comparable.

5.5 Conclusion and Process

While there are many examples of wooden furniture that lasts hundreds of years and even some that have lasted thousands of years, it is probably a very small percentage of all furniture that was ever made. It is reasonable to assume then, that the vast majority of furniture manufactured now, will be discarded in 100 years. While the exact reference was not found for this work, it is known that the expected service life of modern furniture is much shorter than that. Should furniture be decorated with prints from the printer prescribed here, the graphic should retain its colour for well over the expected life expectancy of the piece itself. However, this is mainly dependent on the ink used and the properties of the specific ink used by the Printer should be checked with the manufacturer for certainty if longevity is required. Based on this longevity and the yellowing observed on the Thermo-transfer foil samples of Chapter 4, it is likely that the life-limiting factor would be the applied finish and the bonds between the substrate, the ink and the finish.

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So what is the ideal way to employ this method? Use on vertical surfaces Print on Poplar ply works better with machines than MDF. Use Sheets that are as flat as possible and check with the printer for head clearance. In this case, the printer clearance was 3mm so any bowing of the sheet must be less than 3mm when laid flat. Seal the panel with water based lacquer or primer depending on the required vividness of colour. Seal the back to minimise bowing. Cut back and apply a top coat of same to the face. Keep sheet as flat as possible in transporting to the printer. Print chosen image. Apply top coat. If a further coat is required, this last coat can be scuffed but with the finest of grits or a scuffing pad but care is needed not to sand through to the print. Then apply topcoat. Similarly, if subsequent coats are required for a deeper finish.

The recommendation of this method comes with qualifications. The surface produced, although informally tested and found to exhibit the properties of the topcoat, has not been tested to the point of proof of physical durability and so, should be limited to vertical or lowtraffic surfaces. If used on horizontal surfaces, it may be protected by a transparent layer such as glass. This limits the application but such limitations apply similarly to most of the techniques described. This may be less important for one off pieces where the designer/maker understands the final use will not cause high traffic but generally, while it is quite a light fast technique, it is not seen as a physically resilient technique.

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76

Conclusion
Recap project aims Address how each aim was met, describing successes and failures Make recommendations for the use of this research or direction for its continuation based on Market Research, Test results and Product Evaluation.

Recommendations

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Gottsegen, Mark D. 1993. The Painter's Handbook : a complete reference. New York : Watson-Guptill Publications, 1993. Hayward, Helena. 1969. World Furniture: An Illustrated History. London : The Hamlyn Publishing Group, 1969. Heanue, Dr. Kevin. 2008. Aspects of the Furniture Industry in Ireland. Dublin : DCU, 2008. Hillcoat-Imanishi, Anna. 1996. An investigation into the archival properties of Colour Photocopies and Inkjet Prints. Victoria and Albert Museum. [Online] Spring 1996. [Cited: 02 March 2011.] http://www.vam.ac.uk/res_cons/conservation/journal/issue30/photocopies30/index.html Intertrade Ireland. 2004. Intertrade Ireland Furniture Report . s.l. : Intertrade Ireland, 2004. Iqbal, S and Pipon-Young, L. 2009. The Delphi Method. The Psychologist Journal. Online at www.thepsychologist.org.uk, 2009, Vol. 22, 7. Jenkins. FAIR, MILAN FURNITURE. 2010. Dublin : John Jenkins, 2010. Knoll. 2011. Knoll: Knoll Museum. Knoll. [Online] 2011. [Cited: 13 10 2010.] http://www.knoll.com/museum/prod_museum.jsp?prod_id=362. Lane, Allen. 1977. The Penguin Dictionary of Decorative Arts. London : Penguin Books, 1977. Lhotka, Bonnie. 2009. Digital Art Studio Seminars. Digital Art Studio Seminars. [Online] 2009. [Cited: 29 November 2010.] http://www.digitalartstudioseminars.com/DigitalArtStudioSeminars/Lhotka.html. Lovell, Sophie. 2007. Furnish. Berlin : Die Gestalten Verlag, 2007. Lucie-Smith, Edward. 2003. Dictionary of Art Terms. London : Thames and Hudson, 2003. . 1979. Furniture: a concise history. London : Thames and Hudson, 1979. McGarry, Dr. Marion. 2010. Lecture on Wallpaper. Galway : s.n., 2010. Medite. 2006. Medite-Europe. [Online] 2006. [Cited: 13 February 2011.] http://www.mediteeurope.com/en/products_premier.php. MoMA. 2010. MoMA, The Collection, Gaetano Pesce. MoMA. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 12 10 2010.] http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?object_id=87278. . 2010. MoMA, The Collection, Robert Venturi. MoMA. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 12 10 2010.] http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?criteria=O%3AAD%3AE%3A61 32&page_number=16&template_id=1&sort_order=1. . 2010. MoMA, The Collection, Shiro Kuramata. MoMA. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 13 10 2010.] http://www.moma.org/collection/browse_results.php?object_id=2630.

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Nazdar. 2010. Nazdar Lyson Solvent and UV Inks Warranty. [Online] 10 March 2010. [Cited: 27 February 2011.] http://www.nazdar.com/pdf/NazdarLysonSolventUVInksWarranty.pdf. Neufert, E. and Neufert, P. 2002. Architects' Data, 3rd Edition. Oxford : Wiley-Blackwell, 2002. Orbis Publishing. 1976. The History of Furniture. London : Orbis Publishing, 1976. Painted Furniture: new looks in faux finishing, texturing, stenciling & more. Farkas, Lyna. 2004. New York : Lark, Lewes, 2004. Philips. 2010. Philips Lighting, MSDS Downloads. www.usa.lighting.philips.com. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 14 January 2011.] http://www.usa.lighting.philips.com/pwc_li/us_en/connect/tools_literature/downloads/s 06-93001.pdf. Piercy, Siobhan. 2010. Head of Fine Art Printmaking, GMIT. [interv.] Padraig Doyle. 24 November 2010. Porter, Bryonie. Bryonie Porter. Beautiful Wallpapered Furniture. Bryonie Porter. [Online] [Cited: 12 01 2011.] http://bryonieporter.com/gallery1.html. Rogers, Dr. Susan. 2008. Art Deco 1925-1939. Furnititre History Lectures. Letterfrack : GMIT, 2008. . 2008. Postmodernism and Pluralism. Lecture. Letterfrack : GMIT, 2008. Schminke, K, Simpson Krause, D and Pierce Lhotka, B. 2004. Digital Art Studio; Techniques for Combining Inkjet Printing with Traditional Art Materials. New York : Watson-Guptill Publications, 2004. Shell, Steven. 2010. Steven Shell Furnishings, Boules. Steven Shell Furnishings. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 19 11 2010.] http://www.stevenshell.com/products/detail/17. Sikes, Sasha. 2011. [interv.] Padraig Doyle. 01 February 2011. Sunflower Recycling. Sunflower recycling, History. Sunflower recycling. [Online] [Cited: 21 Janary 2011.] www.sunflowerrecycling.ie/history.html. Sunlight, UV and Accellerated Weathering. Brennan, P.; Fedor, C. 1987. Cleveland : QPanel Lab Products, 1987. Society of Plastics Engineers Automotive RETEC. pp. 1-8. Survey Monkey. Survey Monkey. Survey Monkey. [Online] [Cited: 28 January 2011.] www.surveymonkey.com. Sykes, Sasha. 2010. Farm 21. Farm 21. [Online] 2010. [Cited: 28 December 2010.] http://www.farm21.co.uk/. Winkle, Sue. 2007. Satra Spotlight; Testing Materials for light fastness. Satra Technology Centre Website. [Online] June 2007. www.satra.co.uk. Zoomerang. Online Survey Software Tool. Zoomerang. [Online] [Cited: 19 December 2010.] www.zoomerang.com.

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Appendices
Appendix (i). Log of Daily Checks of Test Progress
Table 1 Log of Daily Checks on Test Progress

Date 17/1/11 18/1/11 19/1/11 20/1/11 21/1/11 22/1/11 23/1/11 24/1/11 25/1/11 26/1/11 27/1/11 28/1/11 29/1/11 30/1/11

Day Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun

Blue Wool Start Bare fade on BW1 Bare fade on BW1 Slight fade on BW1 Bare fade on BW2

Samples No change No change No change No change No change

Temp (C) 28.2 28.1 27.5 27.9 28.0

Humidity (%) 21 19 18 18 19

Slight fade on BW3 Slight fade on BW3 Bare fade on BW4 Slight fade on BW4 Slight fade on BW4

No change No change No change No change No change

28.5 28.1 28.0 27.9 28.0

20 20 19 18 18

31/1/11 Mon Slight fade on BW5 1/2/11 Tue Slight fade on BW5

2/2/11 Wed Slight fade on BW5 3/2/11 Thu No. 6, Ambiguous Barest fade on 4/2/11 Fri BW6 5/2/11 Sat 6/2/11 Sun 7/2/11 Mon Bare fade on BW7

Slight darkening Slight darkening Slight darkening Some darkened Some darkened

28.1 28.3 28.0 28.0 28.5

19 18 17 18 18

Stop

28.2

18

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Appendix (ii). Visual Grading of Samples.

Figure 0-1 Table of Fade Test Grading for MDF Samples

85

Figure 0-2 Table of Fade Test Grading for Poplar Ply Samples

86

Sample

Material

Base Top Edge condition after cutting treatment treatment Primer Primer Primer WB Lacquer WB Lacquer Primer Acrylic WB Lacquer WB Lacquer Acrylic Acrylic Acrylic Sealed/ cut back Sealed/ cut back Sealed/ cut back Sealed/ cut back No Top WB Lacquer Acrylic SB Lacquer No Top SB Lacquer No Top WB Lacquer Acrylic WB Lacquer Acrylic SB Lacquer WB Lacquer Acrylic SB Lacquer No Top Poor - Tape removed ink + Saw chips primer Good - Cuts well Good - Cuts well Poor - Edge lifted but not gone Fair - one edge lifted and one perfect Good - barest slice missing at one edge Poor - consistent flaking at saw cuts Good - but barest lift on one edge Poor - Edge lifts and cracks Fair - one edge bad and one perfect Fair - one edge bad and one perfect Good - one slightly hairy and one perfect Poor - Hairy edges after cut Fair - one flakey and one good Fair - one flakey and one good Fair - one flakey and one good

Sample 1 MDF Sample 2 MDF Sample 3 MDF Sample 4 MDF Sample 5 MDF Sample 6 MDF Sample 7 MDF Sample 8 MDF Sample 9 MDF Sample 10 Sample 11 Sample 12 Sample 13 Sample 14 Sample 15 Sample 16 MDF MDF MDF MDF MDF MDF MDF

0-3 MDF: Observation of sawn edges

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Sample

Material

Base Top Edge condition after cutting treatment treatment SB Lacquer No Top Acrylic WB Lacquer SB Lacquer WB Lacquer Acrylic No Top WB Lacquer SB Lacquer Acrylic No Top No Top Acrylic WB Lacquer SB Lacquer

Sample 17 Sample 18 Sample 19 Sample 20 Sample 21 Sample 22 Sample 23 Sample 24 Sample 25 Sample 26 Sample 27 Sample 28 Sample 29 Sample 30 Sample 31 Sample 32

Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply Poplar Ply

Primer Primer WB Lacquer Sealed/ cut back Sealed/ cut back Primer Sealed/ cut back Acrylic Acrylic Acrylic Acrylic Sealed/ cut back WB Lacquer Primer WB Lacquer WB Lacquer

Poor - flakey edges after saw Fair - One good edge and one slightly flakey Good - one slightly hairy and one perfect. Can flake edges Good - but flakes on light colours less obvious Good - Minute hairy edges Good - Cuts well Good - Cuts well Good - Cuts well Good - Cuts well Fair - One good edge and one slightly flakey Good - Cuts well Good - one slightly hairy and one perfect Good - Cuts well Fair - Mostly clear but couple of flakes Good - Cuts well but light colous less obvious Fair - one clear and one flakey

0-4 Poplar: Obersevation of Sawn edges

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Appendix (iii). Safety Statement for UV Testing.

Risk of Fire Over heating: The Lamps are CLF strips rather than incandescent bulbs, but there is still considerable heat generated. The box was tested over a period of 2 days, under supervision for the first hour and regular checks for the following 5 hours. The temperature reached 32 C after 50 minutes and remained constant to within +/- 1for two days. This temperature is considered acceptable. Electrical: All electrical equipment carries the risk of sparking and a resultant electrical fire. Due to the constant (relatively) high temperatures, the BS Wool samples will be quite dry, and therefore making the samples slightly more combustible than they might normally be. The lamps have not been altered in any way so their safety standards have not been compromised. Tipping The Test Box is located on a counter in a seldom used room. Most activity in the room comes from people passing through at the opposite side of the room few people have reason to, or ever do, approach the worktop. For those that do approach the worktop, the box is heavy and set close to the surface so its not top-heavy. Its also placed against the back apron as far from the front edge as possible. It is not considered necessary to fix it to the worktop. This wouldnt be ideal as the apparatus may need to be moved due to the varying needs of the college. Generally, this should not be a problem. The Apparatus will be well signed, in a safe location and position in that location. Tipping would require a concerted effort.

UV light All UV lights have certain risk. This is detailed in the below extract from the MSDS but care will be taken to prevent light escaping from the box. Electric shock All electrical appliances carry some risk of electric shock but the original consumer components have not been tampered with and are isolated inside the box, thus reducing the risk of contact with the components, thereby eliminating the risk of electric shock without

89

unscrewing the box and abusing the light fixture. The presence of light fixtures is clearly labelled. Other relevant considerations:

The following was extracted from the fluorescent strip MSDS (Philips, 2010): SECTION 2: HAZARDOUS INGREDIENTS OSHA PEL ACGIH TLV Phosphor powder* (Ca,Zn) P04:Tl Approx 2% by Wt. nuisance dust 15mg/m 10mg/m Thallium 7440-28-0 (TWA) .1mg/m .1mg/m Less than .05% Zinc 7440-66-6 5mg/m Less than .05% Calcium Phosphate 7757-93-9 none est. none est. Less than 2% Mercury 7439-97-6 .1 mg/m .025mg/m Less than .02% Ceiling 8 hr. TWA *These materials are tightly bound within the Calcium Phosphate crystal matrix. SECTION 3: PHYSICAL /CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS Not applicable. This item is a light bulb. Up to 6 feet long and 1.5 inches in diameter.

SECTION 4: FIRE AND EXPLOSION DATA Fire and explosion data not applicable. Under extreme heat glass envelope might melt or crack. SECTION 5: REACTIVITY DATA Stability: Lamp is stable Incompatibility: Glass will react with Hydrofluroric Acid Polymerization: Not applicable SECTION 6: HEALTH HAZARD DATA During operation this lamp emits ultraviolet radiation in the 280-400nm range (UVB region). It conforms to Federal Regulation regarding medical devices (FDA) 40 CFR 801.403 and is intended for medical/industrial uses only. DANGER: This lamp should only be used under the following conditions. Follow instruction of Physician. Use only in a fixture equipped with a timer. USE PROTECTIVE 90

EYEWEAR, FAILURE TO DO SO MAY RESULT IN SEVERE BURNS OR LONG TERM INJURY TO THE EYES. Medications or cosmetics may increase your sensitivity to ultra violet radiation. Serious burns may be caused by exposure in excess of dosage recommended by Physician. Do not use over skin eruptions unless directed by Physician. Breakage of the lamp may result in some exposure to the phosphor powder dust and to elemental mercury vapour. The phosphor contains thallium which has the following data Man, Ora1 Ld 5.714 mg/kg IDLH 20mg/m (Soluble compounds). Thallium is not listed as a carcinogen by the NTP,IARC, or OSHA. It is a cumulative poison. It or its salts can be absorbed through intact skin; if they are ingested they are rapidly absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract. Thallium acts as a mitotic (affecting cell division) agent and a general cellular poison. Acute poisoning chiefly affects the central nervous system (CNS) and the GI tract. The ingestion of soluble thallium salts causes more serious effects than the pure metal. Medical conditions aggravated by long term exposure. Disorders of the CNS, GI tract, kidneys, liver, and eyes. Target organs: eyes, CNS, lungs, liver, kidneys, GI tract. FIRST AID: Eye; immediately flush eyes, including under the eyelids, gently but thoroughly with plenty of running water for at least 15 minutes. Skin; immediately wash the affected area with soap and water. Inhalation; remove the exposed person to fresh air, restore and/or support his or her breathing as required. Ingestion; Treat as an emergency. If the exposed person is responsive, give him or her several glasses of milk or water and then induce vomiting. GET MEDICAL HELP FOR ALL EXPOSURES. While the amount of Thallium in the phosphor is small, avoid breaking lamps. If lamps are to be broken use adequate personal protection and ventilation. SECTION 7: PRECAUTIONS FOR SAFE HANDLING AND USE Normal precautions should be taken for the collection of broken glass. Waste Disposal Method: At the end of rated life, when this lamp is removed from service, it will be subjected to the current Toxic Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) prescribed by the Environmental Protection Agency. This test is used to determining whether an item is a hazardous waste or a non-hazardous waste under current E. P. A. definition. These lamps would fail the TCLP test and would be considered hazardous under the Universal Waste Rules. Generators should evaluate all of the disposal options, which may be available in the particular state in which the 91

generators facility is located. The generator should check with federal, state and local officials for their guidance. Philips encourages recycling of its products by qualified recyclers.

92

Appendix (iv): Trend Predictions of Ursula Geismann

To reword Geismanns trend predictions for last year (Geismann, 2010) would be to risk misinterpreting them. The following is taken directly from the website of IMM Cologne International Furnishing Show: Whats on its way out?

- Small dining tables - 1-2-3-seater suites without any functions - Dark rustic kitchens - Smooth covering fabrics for upholstered furniture - Bulky furniture Whats here to stay?

- The mega-colour white for upholstery coverings and storage furniture surfaces - Wall units with flat screen TVs and long sideboards, highboards and lowboards - The kitchen dining living area as a spatial unit - Aubergine shades for a dignified splash of colour - Furniture that looks good from the back too and can be placed in the middle of the room - Adjustable upholstered furniture - Walk-in wardrobes - Rococo ornaments as patterns, e.g. as woven covering- fabrics with a velvet-like surface and relief character - Cross Design as a lifestyle guarantee: furniture by Joop!, Esprit & Co. - Furniture classics as a timeless value - Bio ethanol fireplaces - Themed childrens rooms with e.g. a Princess or Pirate motif Whats on its way in?

- Dining armchairs that you can sit on comfortably for a long time - Garden furniture that looks like living room furniture - Outdoor kitchens and showers 93

- Lounge chairs for chilling - Private spa oases where the bedroom and bathroom merge into a single unit - Large-format dining tables - Blue covering fabrics - Dark wood, preferably in combination with glass and stainless steel - Feminine forms: organically designed upholstered furniture - High-gloss and handleless kitchens - Gold for accentuation on e.g. little cupboards, chair frames or decorative cushions - Greenline furniture - LED lighting technology in cupboards and shelving

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Appendix (v) Analysis of the current furniture retail market for graphics on furniture:
Most furniture shops in Galway were visited in late 2010. Many shops in Dublin were visited in December and January.
Name of outlet Location Target Market/ Price Range Graphic Furniture Description Currently limited to frosted glass tables but as recently as a year ago, Billy Book cases with printed foil were released as a limited edition. Doesn't fit the Muji ethos Very small range of furniture Other Graphic s Format

IKEA

Dublin

Low to mid/ affordable

Yes

Yes

Printed Wall Hangings, printed light shades, Upholstery and soft furnishings

Inreda Muji No Fixed Abode

Dublin Dublin and Online Dublin and Online

High End/ Designer Affordable High End/ Designer

No No

Yes No

Soft furnishing and accessories Proliferation of graphics on tableware and soft furnishing

No

Yes

Midcentur y online.com

Dublin and Online

High End/Preowned designer furniture

No

Busy Bees

Dublin

Renovated

Yes

Not currently in stock but often used in renovations -

No

Not applicable Upholstery, especially Fama range Soft furnishing Vast array of tableware and soft furnishing and upholstery Tableware (poppy fields) Soft furnishing and accessories Soft furnishing and accessories

Curley's EZ-Living Arnott's/C onran Clery's Home Store and more Harvey Norman

Galway Galway

Low to mid/ affordable Low to mid/ affordable High End/ Designer Mid to High End/Traditional Low to mid/ affordable Low to mid/ affordable

No No

Yes Yes

Dublin

No

Yes

Dublin Dublin Dublin

No No No

Yes Yes Yes

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In Store

Galway

Mid-range/ affordable

No

Yes

Some printed lightshades, printed "artwork", Some painted wooden profiles that can be stuck on childrens furniture

TK Maxx

Dublin

Low to mid/ affordable

No

However, TK Maxx have in the past stocked furniture with painted decoration - Similar to Steven Shell.

No

However, this changes regularly.

Objekt

Newcastle West

High End/ Designer

Yes

Pattern on Frosted Glass Coffee table by Ciacci Kreaty. Two others by Calligaris. Side table Ari by Frag HPL print

Yes

Ambrogina Chaise Longe by Missoni. Table Ware by Guzzini. Missoni Floral Rugs. 50s/60s style patterned carpets by Designer Carpets. La Foule printed light screen

Cempo Next Directory Bodie and Fou

Athlone Online/UK

Mid to High End/Traditiona l Low to mid/ affordable Mid to High End/ Designer

No No

Plenty of colour but no graphics Coffee tables appear to be printed HPL and some children's furniture appears to have decals applied -

Yes

Loud patterns on some upholstered sofas

Online/UK

No

Yes

Some on home wares but prolific wallpaper graphics Most accessory categories have some printed items

Scandinav ian Design Centre

Online/UK

Mid to High End/ Designer

Yes

Yes

Toast

Online/UK

not furniture but clothes and home accessories

Most accessory categories have some printed items. Interesting Methacrylate tray with a print on the base. Maybe used in furniture

Zara home

UK and Online

Low to mid/ affordable

No

YEs

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Further detail on individual retailers: IKEA: This is discussed in detail in section 2.6The Billy Anomaly so not repeated here.

www.nextdirectory.ie Next specialises in clothing but also sells affordable soft furnishings, accessories and lighting. A small selection of wall art ranges from cartoon-graphics to photo-graphics. They have been selected to fit a colour scheme of pastel blue, a range of browns and dark greys and black framing. They are printed to canvas. Wallpapers are largely floral patterns with some damask. With one or two exceptions, the colours are soft. There are no more than four or five colours used on any one style. The styles range from greens to pink-and-purples to teal. Curtains and soft furnishings are similar to the wallpapers but with the addition of several plain neutral colours. Notably, in the sample images, wherever curtains are patterned, the walls are painted and wherever the walls are patterned, the curtains are plain. This highlights a common belief in interior design that overuse of pattern and graphics can create a heavy feel. Graphics (in any form), in contemporary interiors serve to create interest or highlight an otherwise neutral space.

www.muji.com A Japanese retailer gone global, Mujis aesthetic is plain and simple without complicated pattern or form. While their furniture is not yet available in Ireland, they have a considerable UK presence of 13 stores. The unadorned aesthetic of such a successful global retailer cannot be ignored when exploring a market for applying graphics to furniture. It stands in contrast to the graphic aesthetic sought here.

www.inreda.ie Lower Camden Street, Dublin. An uninformative online presence made a store visit necessary. This small high-end store specialises in designer furniture, accessory and kitchen utensils. Graphics were scarce and limited to soft furnishings and accessories.

www.bodieandfou.com High-end designer furniture. No graphics 97

www.nofixedabode.ie No Fixed Abode has a tiny range of furniture without graphics.

www.etsy.com Etsy allows crafts people to sell any handmade items on their own personal sub-page. It seems to attract a lot of small scale clothing designers but also a considerable contingent of print and graphic artists. Print Party is one such seller specialising in screen-printing on fashion items such as bags, clothing and posters. In an interview on the site, one of the Print Party designers conveyed the belief that any product could benefit from some illustration. Interested by this interview, the author emailed the designer to ask her opinion on the suitability of applying such graphics to furniture. She is of the general opinion that, if pattern and graphics work on textiles, and hence can be used on furniture, there should be no reason the graphics couldnt instead be applied directly to the furniture. However, she believes it could easily look tacky and depends greatly on the skill of the designer and on the taste of the customer. Aside from the wealth of availability of print and even some handed painted furniture, the website, by its nature does not provide a coherent and reliable source to identify contemporary trends; each seller on the site operates individually and conducts only the level of market research each deems appropriate but generally, based on the size of the sellers, this could not be very much. Each seller is also coming from a different geography and cultural background and is trying to sell on a global market. Hence, it would seem that this is a collection of many craftspeople pushing individual styles and mini trends in as many different directions so while it can be a great way to shop and to sell, it cannot reliably be used to identify trends. The site was searched for examples of graphic furniture nonetheless. There are examples of hand painted furniture and inlaid furniture. These are in a craft style rather than contemporary design.

www.midcenturyonline.com This is a relatively small collection of (about 40) pre-owned high-end designer furniture items. None are graphically enhanced.

www.scandanaviandesigncenter.com 98

This Marimekko tray table shown in Figure 0-5 from the Scandinavian design centre exemplifies some of the intention of this research. The prints are colourful, varied and applied directly to a high-traffic surface. The Occhio coffee table is a similar table from the same source. The table tops appear to be Printed HPL (similar to Formica). These two tables are the only examples of graphically enhanced tables out of a field of 26 styles. In fact, no other furniture with the exception of childrens furniture had any graphical enhancement. As for the childrens furniture, these were often enhanced by relatively small individual graphics such as the hedgehogs on the Micki Storage box below. These are most likely applied on a Decal over the paint and then finished with lacquer.

Figure 0-7 Micki Storage Box Figure 0-5 Marimekko Tray Tables Figure 0-6 Occhio Coffee Table viewed from above

www.toast.co.uk Toast sells mainly soft furnishings. Some are patterned. One cushion in particular has an interesting print but nothing of much relevance is sold here. www.zarahome.ie Zara does not have a large range of furniture. There are some pieces with carved pattern but no graphics. Soft furnishings have some pattern but this seems woven rather than printed. One interesting piece is a tray made from methacrylate with a text print on the bottom of the tray. This could be a way of applying graphics to furniture surfaces.

Design Blogs. The following pages detail observations from a list of interior design blogs. Each blog alone is subjective but 16 blogs combed in their entirety should provide a more realistic picture. www.blanaid.com 99

June 11th: Photography of Steven Meisel is shown. The images are stunning and suggest that images such as these would be enduring pieces to print in high quality to door panels of high-quality durable cabinetry. The cabinetry would simply be a functional picture frame. Blanaid exposes a new imagery she finds, most months but her main interest seems to be fashion and accessories. Graphic furniture is nowhere to be found on her blog. White surfaces dominate with splashes of colour through upholstered furniture. www.eatliveshop.com: House tour is an interesting feature where various contemporary homes are exposed. Graphics are kept to the walls, framed with white or raw concrete or wood. Occasional but surprisingly little patterned fabric. Again, no graphic furniture to be found. Chezlarsson.com: Some trendy furniture discussed, such as Emeco chair in October. This verifies that the blog is somewhat on-key but no evidence of graphic furniture. www.friendlycottage.com Soft colours and deep plush furnishings are the trends to follow for 2010 and onward

www.garrendennylane.ie/blog: Interior design rather than furniture focused. Many examples of printed accessories but none of furniture www.padcandy.blogspot.com: This is Dara Flynn, columnist with Sunday times and former editor of House and Home magazine. Flynn recommends the IKEA Billy bookcase as a student solution for storage and posts a picture of the limited edition printed version from 2009. This shows some appreciation for graphic furniture. Flynn was an intended panel member but contact details could not be found. www.designheaven.wordpress.com: Ideas and projects www.custardbydesign.blogspot.com: Irish blogger Richy shares design trends and architectural inspiration www.ilikelocal.blogspot.com: 100

Figure 0-8 This Table is the only evidence approaching graphic furniture on the site. This table is in an advertising companys boardroom and is made from lego not quite a graphic but with a comparable effect. However, it carries more weight than a simple print.

www.doorsixteen.com: Dominanted by white (and some greys) walls and furniture with natural wood accents. No graphics on furniture. Prints neatly framed off to the walls www.designsponge.com Design Sponge has a product guide section where a particular item, Sideboards for example, is reviewed and many currently contemporary sideboards will be presented. There are notable examples of graphic furniture in this blog: Cabinetry: Crepax Cabinet which is a simple cabinet with a black and white cartoon graphic on the upright panels Moorish chest with black and white silhouette pattern of leaves. Wrongwoods by Moss is a plywood unit with striking woodblock prints of enlarged wood grain patterns in vivid colours. Zanotta Alchera Chest with Poster like icons on each panel Limited Edition Billy Bookcase Tables: Remix coffee table from plushpod designed by barrera and cignanic. Silk screen print on birch ply

101

Figure 0-9 Wrongwoods by Moss

Figure 0-11 Zanotta Alchera Chest

Figure 0-10 Crepax Cabinet Figure 0-12 Remix coffee table, by Barrera and Cignanic

www.prettyfarwest.blogspot.com Prints on fabric and on wallpaper but none on hard furniture. www.makingitlovely.com Very little furniture and none with graphics. www.lustcovetenvy.blogspot.com No graphics on furniture. Not a very comprehensive site anyway. www.remodelista.com 129 tables listed none had graphics. 32 Benches none had graphics 54 Cabinets none had graphics 102

www.maggymoon.wordpress.com March 09, MM talks about painted furniture. The particular example depicted simply has subtle leaf-garland motif on drawer fronts of a green painted dresser. She comments that pieces like this add individuality to an interior. This is a use for graphics not covered by the experts the use and meaning could be in the location of the piece rather than in content of the graphic. A second example is a hand-painted screen. She suggests TK Maxx or Littlewoods to source some cheaply but also suggests that these can be painted by adventurous consumers. This is another loose reference to furniture improvement/up-cycling. In April, she displays a Moroccan themed room with a hand-crafted, brightly handpainted stool. The idea of Ethnic furniture was not mentioned by the experts and is a potential market but this would be more suited to hand techniques rather than the technology aided Irish blog with inspiring images of interior design related www.ninacampbell.com: Nina Campbells online store sells accessories, soft furnishings, tableware and furniture, upholstered and solid. With the exception of solid furniture, every other category has at least some examples of printed pattern.

Appendix (vi) Transcript of Discussion with industry experts.

Question 1 Graphics in the form of pattern are an integral part of much upholstered furniture and in recent years, patterned upholstery has been very popular. Patterns and other graphics have also been used on many other fashion-led products in recent years - clothing, soft furnishing, tableware - to name a few. These strong trends have not carried over to solid furnishings. Why do you think this might be?

Industry Expert1 My first initial thought is that in Ireland particularly, due to the current economic situation people are terrified about spending their money as they don't know if they are going to have a job next week for example. I think there is a certain market in Ireland who will pay for 103

unusual work such as patterned work but that is a small niche market. From our own experience unfortunately most people don't care if it's made in China as long as the price is right. As regards manufacturing in Ireland where labour costs are high, they love unusual items but don't want to pay for them. I feel that IKEA have cornered the market in this type of concept and although they are very vague about details on sustainability etc they do produce cheap fun furniture and people don't seem to mind if it falls apart after 3 years. We have become a transient society where everything can be thrown away, it's almost a relief to the self, you know lets buy something new as I can dump this piece it's falling apart (I don't have to feel guilty about that). Actually investing in solid furniture is a very responsible thing to do and is really a labour of love as it's going to be around for a long time and demands a certain commitment from the owner - they have to take care of it. I am not sure how ready Ireland is for patterned work, we have tried very different kiddies furniture for example which to be fair may have been the wrong market, but whilst people absolutely loved it, they didn't want to pay for it. This tells me that you need a wider audience and a targeted marketing plan for this type of product. Ireland alone is not big enough for unusual work like this.

Industry Expert4 I think one of the obvious reasons is that solid furniture has a longer lifespan, which often outlives fashion and trends. As the owners tastes change and evolve, other more transient items like clothing and tableware can be replaced more readily and at less cost. Soft furnishing can be re-upholstered; even walls can be repainted or wallpapered etc. There's a definite upsurge in the amount of people offering furniture improvement services. (If Dublin City Council is doing it there's obviously a market for it) It's debatable whether such services could offer finishes on a par with the original designers solution, but it seems to give the less interesting pieces a new lease of life. Perhaps this idea of change can be built in to solid pieces through removable panels or elements which can easily be changed as required? When it comes to purchasing pieces that are to last, people are less likely to stick their neck out and are more inclined to play it safe, keep it neutral.

Industry Expert6

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Pattern seems to be used quite prolifically on very fashion-led products for the simple reason that they do date quickly. Quite often inferior materials are used and pattern is a good way to hide this. Consumers buy with their eyes and rarely think too deeply about the lifespan of a product until its too late. Good design shouldnt/doesnt need dressing-up. Theres an honesty and beauty in highlighting the raw materials of manufacture. I would be interested to see an example of what would be considered the successful application of pattern to solid furnishing.

Are we talking about micro-textures or loud expressions of painted pattern?

Industry Expert2 My view is that the furniture market is dictated by what is in fashion in the furniture sector. This in turn, is dictated by what is shown in the interior magazines but they can only show what is available to them in either peoples homes (that never look like they were ever lived in) or by what the furniture shops have on display themselves and the furniture in peoples homes comes from the furniture shops. So it comes back to the furniture retailer why does that person not purchase furniture with graphics. Is it because they are not available to purchase for resale or if they are available that the general public wont buy them? Furniture fashion has changed from pine to oak to walnut over 15 years, it moves but very slowly. Furniture retailers purchasing habits (dictate) taste, price dictates demand, volume dictates price; a good price for the consumer further dictates greater demand. In order for furniture to be accepted in the graphic format that you are suggesting then the retailers need to put it on the floor, the magazines need to sing from the roof tops about it and the show houses, need to show and display it in its best form and it needs to be produced in volume in china for it to be affordable for the average consumer

Industry Expert3 Yes, graphically enhanced furniture has been around sometime. The first to do it were the Egyptians some 3,000 years ago. Why did they do it? Firstly, they did it because they could! They had the tools, the skills and the imagination. Secondly, they did not do it for commercial reasons, they did it for their beliefs or if you like, their religion. The Chinese have done it also both for celebration and more recently for practical purposes such as Icons on a medical chest. We interpret them as decorative simply because we dont understand the icons (i.e. language). 105

This attitude to religion has lasted for a few thousand years and in some contemporary religions this still exists. When furniture as we know it existed in the Middle Ages, it was rare and was often adorned in images of characters or significant happenings which had been written about (in the Bible). Furniture was rare, and the available skills were directed towards an overwhelming respect, and in most cases, a fear of God! When personal wealth allowed for furniture to be made for others than the church, then it became a case of really showing off wealth to the extreme. Every way of adorning the surfaces of furniture were exercised. The more elaborate (the furniture), the more wealthy the person. Furniture pieces were commissioned just like paintings and they became a barometer of wealth.

All you have to do is pick up a book on period furniture and see the ways in which the craftsmen showed off! Carving, inlaying, gilding, marquetry and of course painting. Soft furnishings were always, and to a great extent still are, a vehicle for adding pattern and colour. Why have they existed in this medium and not in hard surfaced furniture? The answer is very easy. Money! It is simply very expensive to apply decoration to a hard surface even if it is through CNC routering, Laser engraving or through any other contemporary technology. Can you imagine how much it would cost to apply inlay or apply marquetry to a surface. You can find these hand skills still exist but they are costly to perform because they are time consuming. Time the most expensive commodity of them all!

The Chinese and other eastern cultures are still able to do all of this, and do, because they are relatively cheap to do. This sounds like a history lesson, but we ignore the past at our peril. There is still a widespread market for graphically enhanced furniture as you call it. I often see new pieces which have tried to capture the essence of pieces from the past e.g. Architects Drawing Chests which have letters or numbers which were an aid to index drawings. Today these drawings will be stored on a disc, but this does not devalue the lovely chests which still appeal to those who love a bit of Retro. So, for these people, function has been replaced by nostalgia! Whilst I could expand on the history, I think I have made my point. Its about Cost. Printing and weaving fabrics is still an economic proposition. Perhaps we are just happy to see wood in its purest form and to recognise the fact that every piece is unique and perhaps we are now

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of the opinion that it does not require enhancement. It may be a case of not gilding the lily as its beautiful enough already?

Industry Expert 5 1. Patterns can date a piece very quickly and are less classic in age. If you look at a classic piece of furniture - it rarely will have patterns (fabric / inlay) on them unless they are making a statement of when they were made / designed.

2. Patterns can localize a piece (nowadays a good thing). Over the last few decades designers / manufactures / suppliers have gone global and the market wants global design and so less patterns that localize and fashion lead a piece (market lead) Question 2 People may have preconceptions of graphically enhanced furniture. As with all products, this will vary with the function of the furniture, the consumer's demographic, international location as well as broader social contexts (e.g. recession, eco-awareness). With this in mind, what markets might now exist for the graphical enhancement of Furniture?

Industry Expert1 I think I actually answered this in Question 1. It's a wider audience than in Ireland. Unfortunately the whole world is in a recession now which has a knock on effect everywhere on people's buying power. I think you need to be market specific i.e. identify your target market segment and proceed from there. In our experience it is not the children's market so that would indicate it's adults but as I don't know what your product is I cannot advise any more on that.

Industry Expert6 I can see a market in graphically enhanced furniture if it is appropriate to the function of the piece, i.e. educational items for children, way finding devices etc. But in terms of applying graphics to furniture for aesthetic purposes I can only see this happening in markets where manufacturers are eager to see their products with a short life-span.

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Industry Expert2 I believe the graphic represents the market like Chinese writing for that market, a modern design for the modern Italian market. The French have a passion for old style painted furniture with simple floral designs. It is true that the function of the piece should reflect the graphic but you need to decide who your target market is and apply this understanding

Industry Expert 5 1. DIY graphics for your own use (Reclaiming furniture etc) 2. Branding - Retailer outlets and events 3. Local furniture makers / artists developing their unique style / statement 4. Tourism in Ireland public (tell a story - signage / public furniture / monuments Newgrange has done it). A wide range of markets are open to this application - the most important thing is that graphics should be used for a reason like telling a story - a reason for its use and not just a decoration

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