TGAS Launches “Galante Design Studio”

The Galante Design Studio (GDS) pop-up gallery in Harvard Square was buzzing with verve and vigor on October 17 as more than 100 visitors eyed and awed GDS’s Atlas Obscured Collection of map-latticed chairs at the gallery’s grand opening that day.

“The vast cross-section of guests from many different cultural backgrounds, age groups, and industries echoed the very design language of the Atlas Obscured Collection,” said Lizamie Bustillo, chief operating officer for GDS. “Many commented on the exquisite detail of the maps and how they were incorporated into the curves and bends of the chair designs.”

The Atlas Obscured Collection is a series of walnut, cherry, white oak, and colored aluminum chairs that incorporate layered cutouts of streetscapes of world-renowned cities into their seats, backs, and sometimes legs. All were custom-cut in the GDS workshop from images of archival maps of Boston, Cambridge, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Mexico, New York, Paris, Tokyo, and Venice from four different phases of each city’s history. These four maps were layered on top of one another and framed in place to make a sculptural statement about the city’s evolution and identity, as well as the handicraft that made the chairs not just furniture, but functional art.

“When I explained they are bent by hand, they were impressed by the craftsmanship,” said Bustillo. “Others commented on the uniqueness of using map layers to convey the history of a city, rather than words, and how it was a universal way of expressing evolution, much like how music transcends the limits of language.”

Bustillo added that the chairs with Boston and London maps were the center of attention at the opening, due to the transformative stories they told of the evolution of their cities’ riverbanks, bridges and streetscapes. By looking through a chair’s latticework, one can sense the morphology of its city’s streets and how it developed along its water route by capitalizing on the river’s opportunities for commerce, agriculture, natural resources, and travel.

Users and viewers can also craft their own narratives about their personal associations with the cities represented on the chairs. Hence the collection’s slogan “Objects with Meaning,” signifying their encapsulation of the essence and the beauty of city living as the individual observer experienced it while in the actual city.

“The design has a universal appeal,” said Bustillo. “Since we literally can produce chairs for any city, any place, and any time-period for which maps exist, anyone who looks at the chair can imagine which city they would do and what time periods they would choose in order to narrate their unique story. That’s why people of all backgrounds and age groups have been showing interest and providing such positive and flattering feedback.”

The Atlas Obscured Collection is catching fire in other ways as well. ArchDaily announced in November that the collection was recognized in the Highlighted Submissions category of the Architect’s Chair Competition sponsored by Buildner, where one of the judges was Philippe Starck. Featured in the article is the promotional photo of Bustillo sitting erect in one of the chairs.

“We are featured on an international platform, and that is satisfying,” said GDS’ founding principal, Ted Galante. “Maybe this turns into connections with other competitions or galleries.”

The Atlas Obscured Gallery is the third exhibit of the Atlas Obscured Collection, which was initially showcased at New York City’s ICFF/Wanted Design, Launchpad Designer Showcase, and at the European Cultural Council’s Time, Space, Existence, as part of the Venice Biennale, both in May 2023. The gallery, located at 31 Brattle St. in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and later on Thursdays until 8 p.m. The closing date is December 28. For more information, visit galantedesignstudio.com or email [email protected].