Couch in an Envelope:
Challenging Design Archetypes with AI
How can we use AI to challenge design archetypes and reimagine the couch as lightweight, adaptable, and recyclable?
The couch is synonymous with comfort. The centre of our living rooms, it is where we unwind, chat with friends, read, nap, and relax. Yet, the established design archetype of the couch — heavy, bulky, difficult to transport — feels increasingly outdated in an age of flexible living and ever-changing lifestyles.
We collaborated with Panter&Tourron to reimagine the couch as something that is light, adaptable, and comfortable — challenging generative AI to liberate the couch from its historical form. We also created a film sharing a historical retrospective on the couch, and the evolution of a new archetype, see below.
The result is Couch in an Envelope, an AI-assisted exploration rethinking the design of the couch. A speculative concept that is flat-packed, modular, and would only weigh 10 kilograms.
“The project is an agenda for change. To inspire designers to challenge other outdated archetypes and move towards designs that are lighter, and more sustainable. Better for people and the planet.”
- Georgina McDonald, Creative & Partnerships, SPACE10
Design for disassembly
The conventional design, shape, and numerous components of a typical couch can make it difficult to recycle. Many old or unwanted couches end up in landfill, and governments are beginning to create guidelines to manage the hazardous chemicals embedded in couch waste.
For Couch in an Envelope, we wanted to lessen these negative effects on the environment by disrupting ingrained materialities. This conceptual couch is imagined with an aluminium frame, a recycled and endlessly recyclable metal. The cellulose-based fabrics and mycelium foam would be fully compostable or biodegradable.
Reducing the amount of materials would keep the couch lightweight, making it easier and less energy-intensive to transport. Its durable, biodegradable and vacuum-sealed envelope packaging would be suitable for storage and stacking in warehouses, and presentable for retail stores.
The tool-less and screw-less design makes this concept couch easy to assemble, disassemble, and recycle if necessary. ‘We wanted to simplify the material composition, prioritising weight, disassembly and circularity,’ says Stefano Panterotto, designer and co-founder of Panter&Tourron. ‘We’ve envisaged something that’s 100 percent recyclable, without sacrificing softness.’
Moves with you
Recognising that the couch can be a space for rest, conversation, play, and more, the concept can flex to meet the changing requirements of life at home. The adjustable ‘wings’ can be lowered or raised to comfortably seat two or three people.
The modular design allows multiple couches to be placed together to create a larger seating space. Being lightweight and easy to move, Couch in an Envelope would appeal to people who relocate regularly for work or education. Its easy disassembly also makes it a couch that could be passed between friends and family, extending its lifespan.
‘It’s designed with freedom of space in mind,’ says SPACE10’s Georgina McDonald. ‘A single couch could live in a shared apartment or open-plan space. Or in a multi-module configuration, it can create a semi-architectural space. It’s designed with our contemporary habits in mind, and ready to adapt for the ones of tomorrow.’
Regenerating the couch
The project began with a question: why do so many couches follow the same form? And how might AI liberate us from these design archetypes?
As part of SPACE10’s wider explorations of generative AI tools, we collaborated with Panter&Tourron to apply AI to challenge the norms and biases found in furniture design and assist in designing Couch in an Envelope.
We began by inputting prompts, like ‘a couch made for nomadic living’, into generative AI platforms Runway and Midjourney. At first, it was impossible to escape the typical shape of the couch whenever the prompt ‘couch’ was used — showing that human and design biases are deeply embedded in large language models and algorithms. ‘This could negatively impact the future of design,’ says Alexis Tourron, designer and co-founder of Panter&Tourron. ‘Presently, AI can only take us so far in design innovation before craft — and the human — need to intervene.’
Going back to the drawing board, Panter&Tourron experimented with alternative prompts such as ‘platform’, ‘lightweight’, ‘sustainable’, ‘recyclable’, and ‘easy to move’. A process of regeneration, changing elements of the design using the duo’s knowledge of materials and manufacturing, moved the evolving visual towards a form that would be lightweight, adaptable and circular.
Visually distinct from the traditional archetype, Couch in an Envelope demonstrates how we can use AI as a creative collaborator — to think broadly, challenge design biases and outdated archetypes, and hone our ideas. By generating endless imaginative possibilities together, we can design furniture and products that are more relevant for the future of life at home, and better for people and the planet.
Creative brief, design direction, partnership selection: Georgina McDonald
Design, research and prototype production: Panter&Tourron
Copywriting: Kathryn Bishop
Identity design and film: Basile Fournier