Thursday Salute to Originals: Precarious Seesaw Dining
A playground is one of the most fundamental places solely dedicated to childhood. With slides, monkey bars, and swings, the qualities of excitement, adventure, and imagination are exuded from every corner. We all can all recall those great playground memories, but we’re willing to bet that you never imagined those things in your home, much less as a part of your dinner table. Here’s one designer who hasn’t lost her childhood imagination.
Marleen Jansen, a designer from the Netherlands, decided to take the fun of a playground and mix it with the joy of eating. Instead of just creating a standard table with complementary chairs, she decided to take dining to a whole new level by integrating a seesaw as the seat. A play on the basic table manner of “not playing with your food”, the Tafelwip (aka “Seesaw Table”) encourages, almost requires, diners to have fun while eating. Adding a childhood staple directly to the dining experience takes away some of the seriousness of manners, and interjects the bliss of being a child.
But aside from creating fun, the Seesaw Table also cultivates dining together. Today, schedules are so hectic and rushed, that eating alone or in front of the TV has become commonplace. Many people have lost or forgotten the importance of a family meal. The Tafelwip brings to light the fundamentally social aspect of eating. Physically prohibiting one from eating alone, two people must sit at the same time in order to be able to eat at the table. The design forces human interaction while dining, while bringing a lighthearted playfulness to the ritual of dinner.
While were not entirely sold on the idea of swapping out our own dining tables for the Tafelwip just yet, we certainly appreciate the way in which it fuses childhood whimsy and the often forgotten social dynamic of dining. Can’t wait to see what her imagination will create next!
Image credit: Design Taxi