It’s hard to believe that years ago, it was common for living rooms to be arranged like this:

The furniture was arranged for entertaining, for conversation, for “company.” It was once common for friends to drop by, even unannounced, and for you to spread some refreshments around while you sat on couches, facing each other, to shoot the breeze.

Nowadays that sounds insane. Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco perfectly and hilariously illustrates the difference between someone dropping by 20 years ago versus now:

Today it’s rare to see a pair of sofas facing each other; modern living rooms often feature a couch facing the flatscreen. We don’t go over each other’s houses to socialize much these days, opting instead to conduct our social lives on social media. And as open-plan offices and shared workspaces become common, there is a need or desire for furniture that delivers the comfort of a sofa with the privacy of a separate office.

Thus we see designs like Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec’s Alcove seating, designed for Vitra:

The PRIVÉE line designed by Progetto CMR for Aresline:

The throne-like V1 Chair, designed by ODESD2.

Steelcase’s Brody WorkLounge:

Sitland’s Cell 128:

The designs above are primarily form-follows-function, but Studio Makkink & Bey’s EarChair co-opts the form of the wingback chair:

See Also:

– Why do wingback chairs have wings?

– The design benefits of sunken conversation pits