Francesco Favaretto Shares the New Journey of Design

Francesco Favaretto of Favaretto&Partners, our design collaborator, shares his insights on how the practice of product design is changing — and the story behind our new Flying series of chairs.

The world is changing, and we want to make it better.

From a product design standpoint, all of us designers have become more sensitive and self-aware. How a piece can rise above a stereotyped product and fully adapt to the needs of today's users — combining functionality and comfort — is a question designers must re-examine. In a way, the pandemic brought designers new opportunities. In the post-pandemic era, products currently on the market may no longer fully meet current needs. As designers, we need the ability to pinpoint the defining traits of this era and research market demand more deeply. A design should not be just a piece of furniture, but something that blends into the whole environment and serves different people.

Take the airport bench design project for the Yihang brand as an example. Our proposal ranked first among the three international design studios invited to submit concepts. This new airport seating system, named "Flying," was born after days and nights of inspiration, sketching, detailed design, and prototyping through to 3D printing — finally taking shape in a flawless form. As someone who travels constantly, I have plenty of flying experience. Before the pandemic, I spent more than half of each year going from one airport to another, from planes to trains, or hopping into taxis to the airport. I would close my eyes and think about my dream bench — and what I didn't like. I imagined myself traveling. From that moment, my team and I spent countless hours brainstorming, as if drifting along a river of inspiration. Starting from an initial, simple workbench, we conceived a 360° system.

We wanted it to meet every kind of need, not just provide a seat. We anticipated that in the post-pandemic era, seating in public spaces would need to express a certain sense of boundary while also accommodating potentially longer waits. So we needed a more comfortable product to meet users' needs at this stage. At the same time, in terms of appearance, it should be an aesthetic masterpiece for its environment, soothing people both visually and psychologically.

The Flying airport bench system is a perfect interpretation of the aluminum airport seat — a feat in itself. Except for the seat and backrest, all of its components are aluminum. The series offers a variety of seating configurations. The system is mounted on an extruded aluminum beam and supported by die-cast aluminum legs, with every component fixed to them. The backrest is especially distinctive: a saddle-wrap design with unique recognizability, easy to associate with the brand. Viewed from the side, the seat's elegant profile is defined by the smooth connection of diagonal lines. From seat to foot, its light yet stable design radiates a captivating beauty. Various seat arrangements can be configured to suit the scene, forming a unified, harmonious landscape. Electrified circuits built inside provide users with power access, adding flexibility and convenience to the seating.

Every piece we present is meticulously designed. After two years of revisions, adjustments, small-scale sampling, and final production — an arduous process — the result is truly satisfying! As a designer, being able to create such a product is a real source of pride. We hope people from all over the world will sit on this airport bench and get a few minutes of relief for their weary journeys.

Products for public spaces are like cells in an environment. Individually they may seem insignificant, but the combination and arrangement of cells shapes the entire open space. A good product, therefore, can undoubtedly improve the quality of an environment to the benefit of its users.