Shared Beds

Type Material Research & Public Installation 

Date 2019

Location Lake Forest, IL

Collaborator  Piergianna Mazzocca

Competition  Winner



Shared Beds is a collaborative project for the 2019 Ragdale Ring Competition. The project challenges the role of the individual vis-à-vis the collective by reconsidering the seemingly inanimate quality of everyday objects such as beds. The installation is composed of three interactive communal beds, constructed and installed on the grounds of the Ragdale Foundation. The beds act as a communal form of architecture that challenges the role of the individual and the collective and how these two engage in coordinated play. Two of the objects are described by a circle of 15 ft in diameter. Resting on a tipping axis, these objects teeter back and forth depending on the movement inflicted by each occupant. Instead of the upright position of sitting on a bench or a chair, the bed allows for horizontal occupation. Moreover, the horizontal surface at the top, in its most abstract sense, defines a space of rest avoiding the two-sidedness of a traditional orthogonal bed by making all the possible places of rest equidistant to each other. The largest of the 3 objects, described by a circle of 21 ft in diameter, has an asymmetrical tipping axis that produces a primary face that is always in contact with the ground. 





Interactive Beds Double as Seating  
Possible Configurations Diagram Including Centralized, Radial, And Distributed Organizations



 Diagram Of The Bed Motion
Plane Of The Stage
 Plan Of The Bed


 Detail View Of The Surface Pattern Which Makes Visible The Geometry 
Of The Conic Base Onto The Top Surface Of Beds 




A Custom Two Way Slotted Joint Was Developed To Allow The Double Laminate Of 3/4" Plywood To Structure Ribs That Range From 6-24ft


 Custom Two Way Slotted Joint Did Not Require Flip Milling And Helped Negotiate The Limits Of The 4ft X 8ft Plywood Sheet


 The Entire Structure Was Fabricated In Houston, Tx Before Being Driven To Illinois For Assembly 

 The Parts Were CNC Cut From 3/4" Plywood For The Ribs And Top A Well As 1/4" Plywood For The Base