Scary Chairs for Celebrating Halloween

Halloween is here once again, which means its time to celebrate our most unusual and most erratic tradition. For us, there’s nothing more scary than being invited to sit in a chair that, well, might as well be the spawn of the devil.

This Halloween, we have three unusual chairs to feature, which in a first for us, all involve video presentations by their designers. Are you ready to have a seat? How willing would you be to sit in any of these chairs?

The Sinking Chair

It’s rare that a single movie inspires the design of a chair, but when that movie is The Shining, what kind of seat do you think will come out of that inspiration?

In our first featured video, Philipp Aduatz introduces us to The Sinking Chair, which we think takes the idea of an uncomfortable park bench to a whole new level:

Want to know more about how to approach this chair? Core77 provides this interpretation guide:

The Sinking Chair—seemingly descending into a pool of vivid red—captures a haunting interplay between modern design and profound narrative. Crafted from 3D-printed concrete and inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, the work symbolizes the enduring traces of trauma. Its clean, architectural form contrasts sharply with the fluid, organic resin symbolizing blood, evoking unease and introspection.

This piece embodies the idea that design holds the power to confront deeply human experiences. By addressing themes of collective trauma and the cyclical nature of conflict, the Sinking Chair invites viewers to reflect on the scars of the past and how they shape the present. It subtly alludes to contemporary political developments, including the resurgence of authoritarian tendencies and ideological divisions, which echo historical warnings and reinforce the importance of vigilance and empathy.

he chair explores the delicate tension between what is submerged and what persists, urging contemplation of memory, fragility, and resilience. Through its evocative design and material innovation, the Sinking Chair bridges the emotional and the functional, sparking dialogue about the evolving role of design in engaging with the human condition. It challenges us to consider not only what design can achieve aesthetically, but also how it can evoke empathy, reflection, and healing in an increasingly complex and polarized world.

And you can sit on it. Though perhaps not as comfortably as you might like.

The Spaghetti Western Saddle Chair

In the early days of radio, motion pictures and television, lots of entertainment was themed around the Old West in the United States. Eventually, people got tired of the genre and moved on to entertainment in other settings, but before they rode off into the proverbial movie sunset, a number of low budget Westerns made by Italians gave them their last true popular and critical success. Spaghetti westerns, as they came to be called, brought something new and different to the old Western tropes.

Well, saddle up pardner, because this time, Italian designer Raffaella Mangiarotti has brought the spirit of the spaghetti western to your home furnishings, in the form of the Pepe Chair. The following video tells the story….

As the video makes clear, there’s a lot of skill and craft that goes into making a high quality leather chair that can truly make you feel like you’re atop a horse while you watch television or toil away at your desk job.

The Banality of Evil in the Form of a Chair

Imagine you’ve been on your feet all day. You’d like nothing better than to plop down in your favorite comfy chair. But no, the twisted chair designer at Isekai.Lab has a different idea. Before you even think about sitting, first you have to solve… a Rubik’s cube. But not just any Rubik’s cube. The one you need to solve is the chair they’ve designed for you to sit upon, after you’ve successfully solved it. And then, it’s not even a truly comfortable chair you can relax in, but rather a small stool. Here’s a demonstration of their vision of evil in action (click the image to start playing the video):

Previously on Political Calculations

• Outside the Box Thinking: The Ghost Chair
• Cathisophobia
• Chairs to Haunt Your Dreams This Hallow’s Eve
• Chairs of Terror
• Furnishings Fit for Halloween
• Happy Halloween! Now Have a Seat…
• Markets in Everything: Scary Chairs to Sit Upon