The design of American office furniture style design in 1960 to early 1990 incorporated the gendered factors of bodies and stereotyped labor. Furniture design began following the stereotypical gender role and overly detailed designs from the gender of our bodies. The furniture design mostly excluded people’s bodies that were not within the society set normal for what the idealistic body was shaped to be. In 1970, the idea of creating more ergonomic chairs. The ongoing theme of sexism within design created ergonomic chairs primarily not designed for female bodies as they were not in the hierarchy of this time. Office furniture, specifically chairs, was designed to visually represent hierarchy differences between the works. For example, the better job held within the company, the more elaborate chair you could own. Executive chairs were made for the large gender being a male body for behind desk work sybombalzing grand and important. Although someone within the office, such as a secretary, would be in a smaller chair suggesting a smaller female body. Research states gender-based discrimination within the places of work and that sexism will persist across many industries. 

 

This can be seen within the art house Eugene. This location provides viewings for short films as well as artists’ artworks. The space provides options for seating as if also a historical site. The seating that is located within the interior of the building is from the decade when the church was initially built. The church was later converted into what it is now as a view exhibition. The furniture located within the building is similar period to the furniture discussed in the reading, where chairs can represent hierarchy status. The interior chairs within the building are no longer built for that purpose, but, it is interesting to infer what the vary sizing chair purpose was. From the knowledge gained from the article, the larger chairs were most likely for the pastor to use since he holds the most power within the local churches. The pastors are always male, and women of the church to this day are still only able to become nuns. Therefore the chairs within the space hold knowledge of the history of there size and shape, from grand use for power to smaller chairs to nuns within the church. The smaller chairs are also built for a women’s gender norm size, similar to what the article had explained.