This 3D printed chair was designed by nature

In a world where sustainability and innovation are no longer optional but necessary,  designer Patrick Jouin and Dassault Systèmes have teamed up to create something extraordinary: the Ta.Tamu chair. 

Patrick Jouin, a Paris-based designer and Interior Design Hall of Fame member, has been exploring 3D printing for over two decades. Inspired by bone-density algorithms and printed in polyamide, this foldable chair weighs just over 6 pounds and can be printed in one day.

Its name, derived from the Japanese word for “folding,” reflects both its form and philosophy. The chair is the result of a five-year collaboration between Jouin and Anne Asensio, VP of design and innovation at Dassault Systèmes. 

Their partnership began in 1998, when Asensio was at Renault and asked Jouin a simple but powerful question: “How could we improve the car experience?” That spirit of curiosity and disruption carried into Ta.Tamu. 

Using Dassault’s CATIA software, a tool that emulates nature through algorithms based on gravity, atomic density, and fractal systems, Jouin was able to design something previously unimaginable. 

“It’s like designing a forest,” Jouin says. “You can’t draw every leaf on every tree.” 

Ta.Tamu was shaped by the principles of topological optimization. The team used mathematical calculations to strip away unnecessary material, resulting in a chair that’s both lightweight and structurally sound. There’s no ornamentation, yet its intricate structure feels ultra-designed. It’s a paradox: minimal in material, maximal in innovation. 

Asensio adds: “If a form is not purely useful, it’s waste. It has no right to exist.” 

This chair isn’t just a product; it’s a prototype for a new way of thinking. With 3D printing, designers can create objects that were once impossible. And with tools like CATIA, they can do so with nature’s efficiency.  Ta.Tamu is a call to action for creatives everywhere: design with intention, innovate with science, and build with sustainability in mind.

Source: Interior Design