Hacked objects and re-imagined furniture from Portland artist Chris Held

Date
3 July 2012

It’s 8am and you’re on the way to work, a morning coffee in your hand and everything going swell; but what’s this? your barista/coffee purist has steamed your flat white/toffee soy lattaccino for too long and the searing heat from the liquid is burning your hands, even through the protective polystyrene cup. Disaster. Thankfully there’s a solution to your hand-scalding problem courtesy of Portland-based object hacker Chris Held, who proposes the addition of a portable wooden handle to your caffeine receptacle, thus eliminating any burning sensations and rendering you instantly stylish in the process.

Chris’ portfolio is full of similarly canny work, taking ubiquitous found objects and re-imagining their aesthetic and function, elevating them to the realms of the extraordinary. Persian Palett for example takes a fairly uninspiring industrial palett and breathes new life into it with ornate patterned embellishments. Stunning work throughout, though we’re really not sure what use Gold Club could possibly have, save as an outrageously bling back scratcher.

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Chris Held: Handle

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Chris Held: Gold Club

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Chris Held: Persian Palett

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Chris Held: Persian Palett

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Chris Held: Prairie Chair

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Chris Held: Prairie Chair

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Chris Held: Pitcher

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About the Author

James Cartwright

James started out as an intern in 2011 and came back in summer of 2012 to work online and latterly as Print Editor, before leaving in May 2015.

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