Social Reading by Shalvah Gottlieb

Textile / OnBody Organic Pattern

Industrial machine knit.
A hybrid of a hammock and floor pillow.

Shalvah Gottlieb's works from the series “Social Reading” are a mixture of a hammock and a floor cushion that conveys a gentle, calming rocking movement, a springy, weightless sitting feeling. They are easy to dismantle and are therefore particularly suitable for a multi-purpose room. Shalvah Gottlieb's life is especially influenced by books and reading. That is why she regrets the decline in private reading and individual reading pleasure. With her project, she would like to encourage people to engage again more with books. In the course of a survey in libraries, she found that most readers would like to have their own private room to read. This desire for privacy in public space was surprising. Based on this, Shalvah Gottlieb concentrated on Ray Oldenburg's idea of “Third Rooms”. The “Third Room” forms a common space in which people can fulfill their longing for community. This position was originally taken over by religious spaces or spaces dedicated to common interests. Libraries have the potential to become such spaces at the current times. However, this requires new equipment that combines the private and the collective, which conveys more casualness and comfort, less the atmosphere of a working place. Shalvag Gottlieb's hybrids present an innovative and attractive solution for this problem.

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