Conversation Chairs: Social Furniture from Napoleon's Louvre to Contemporary Design

The article explores the history and social significance of conversation chairs, focusing on the 'Indiscret', a three-seat sofa in the Louvre from Napoleon III's Second Empire apartments that forces occupants into intimate conversation. Design historian Anne Massey argues chairs are instruments of social ordering, marking hierarchy and controlling proximity. The 'Indiscret' evolved from the two-seat 'Confident', adding a third seat for surveillance. Today, such social furniture contrasts with hostile architecture that discourages lingering. The exhibition 'Sitzen machen!' at the Deutsches Design Museum, curated by Rafael Horzon, features over 100 chairs exploring social forms, including designs by Eike Otto and Jörg Söchtig. Horzon suggests social design may become the next megatheme, citing Jeppe Hein's curved public benches that transform city furniture into communicative sculptures. A contemporary example at London's Waterloo Station shows a bench designed to foster conversation.