iF DESIGN AWARD 2026 Winner | 'Quiet Arc Folding Stool' Redefines Folding Chairs as Permanent Furniture

Announcement of iF DESIGN AWARD 2026 Win

Maple-Modulo design studio Japan (a wooden furniture workshop based in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture) is pleased to announce that its folding stool, 'Quiet Arc Folding Stool,' has received the iF DESIGN AWARD 2026, a world-renowned design prize.

The Quiet Arc Folding Stool was designed with the goal of creating 'folding furniture that can be permanently installed in daily spaces,' rethinking the conventional view that 'folding furniture = supplementary use.'

A Proposal for 'Portable Permanent Furniture'

While conventional folding chairs excel in portability and storage, they are often treated as auxiliary items due to their simple appearance and low seating height.

The Quiet Arc Folding Stool leverages its excellent folding mechanism to simultaneously achieve beauty as furniture, harmony with the space, and intuitive operability.

While it can be folded compactly when not in use, it possesses a quiet presence when in use that does not feel like 'folding furniture,' proposing new value for modern living spaces with limited room.

Structural Beauty

In this work, the goal was not to hide the folding structure but to make the structure itself part of the design. The rationality of the moving mechanism appears directly as formal beauty, achieving a design where function and beauty are integrated rather than separated.

Additionally, the seat features a gentle curve, balancing visual softness with comfort. It introduces an organic stillness to folding furniture, which tends to be linear.

Harmony with Japanese Aesthetic Sense

At the root of the design is the sense of 'harmony' (wa) found in Japanese culture. As furniture that acts as an entity that does not impose itself but quietly organizes the space, the Quiet Arc Folding Stool was created to naturally blend into the scenery of daily life, not just functionally.

Product Overview

Quiet Arc Folding Stool

Size: W364 × D359 × H433 mm Seat Height: 420 mm Folded Size: W364 × D110 × H480 mm Weight: Approx. 2.8 kg Material: Solid White Oak Finish: Glass-resin coating

Future Prospects

Maple-Modulo design studio Japan plans to proceed with the mass production and product development of this work, with a view toward collaborating with furniture manufacturers and sales partners both in Japan and overseas.