Why Chairs?

“Why chairs?”, a few people have asked. The simple answer is that many of us have old chairs in our basements that could be cleaned up and re-decorated, all at very little cost. And even if you don’t have an old chair to re-do, they are easy to find at garage sales, thrift shops, or possibly from a neighbour happy to do some decluttering. And I'm definitely agreeable with  repurposing old, mundane chairs, giving them an updated and much more interesting look, and maybe displaying them in my garden for the summer months.
 
We tend to take chairs for granted, so why not show one the appreciation it deserves and give it a makeover. An old chair is like a canvas on which to apply paint or fabric or photos, maps, ephemera, writing, buttons or whatever materials you may have on hand. And every chair has a past. Was it a favourite chair in your childhood? Did it belong to a grandparent or other relative? What room was it originally intended for, and where does it now reside? I've just finished updating a hand-me-down wooden kitchen chair that has been a fixture in my studio for several years. Since it already had lots of paint spots on it, well, it seemed fitting to expand on those spots and add a variety of paint colours. I then gave the chair a voice by adding several motivational sayings.

I'm excited by the variety of ideas being expressed by people for their chair makeovers. And if you don't yet have the inspiration for your chair, fear not, as I am putting together a list of suggestions for next week's blog which will hopefully lead to a theme you would like to adopt.

For more information on the Chair project visit  www.navanarts.com