The Rocca: a rocking stool to keep you moving while you sit
Designer Alexander Rehn has created the Rocca, a ring-shaped tube stool to help prevent the health issues that come from sitting too long
How did you come up with the idea? “We sit a lot every day. We sit at work for eight hours without movement, so I wanted to create something playful that gives you the freedom to use it differently from a normal chair. At first it was a box made out of plywood – a rocking box. Then we wanted to do it with moulded plywood but we discovered it would be very heavy and not very stable. So we experimented with metal tubes and found we could make a very basic shape. That’s how we came up with the idea of the ring.
“I wanted to keep it simple because I thought of the modern office. You can carry it around to use at informal meetings. It’s not heavy. You just grab it from the tube and carry it around.”
Is it appropriate for home use? “It’s a great product for the home because it doesn’t look like an office chair. It looks like a fun tool. At home people work at kitchen tables or on wood chairs that are not designed for sitting for very long. This is the biggest complaint people have when they are asked about the home office. We also had a lot of requests from schools when we presented the stool in Sweden [where it is manufactured and sold by Materia; materia.se].”
What’s so great about using a metal tube? “The metal tubes are very stable, and cheap and light in comparison to wood. It has a simple look – it’s like a line drawing. That was the goal from the beginning – simple and charming, something that looks fun.”
Is there any research behind the idea that we should move as we sit? “It’s well known that you should change your position over time and sit on different chairs. This stool is not made for sitting on for eight hours but it’s an additional feature for your workspace so you can change your position and be more active. You have to be active to sit upright. It’s like sitting on a yoga ball.”
Does the rocking make a sound? “There’s no noise because underneath the tubes we have little rubber strips, which also protect the floor if you have a stone or concrete floor. At the Stockholm Furniture Fair it was nice to see people try it. At first they were shy but when they understood the product they started rocking.”
