Totem Stool 67

A slender steel frame, a wide flat base and a single soft cushion on top. Totem reads almost like a line drawing that happens to hold your weight.

Sylvain Willenz designed it in 2020 around a deliberate contradiction: the frame looks too delicate for the job, and is not. The stability comes from the broad base plate rather than from bulk in the structure, which is what keeps the profile so light.

A circular steel ring set low on the frame does double duty as a footrest and as the piece's graphic signature. Take it away and the stool loses most of its character.

The seat is an MDF shell under high resilience foam with a fixed fabric cover, and the frame and matching base plate are lacquered steel with a felt pad underneath.