Description

The Frenesí Bar Stool, whose name translates into English as ‘Frenzy,’ was designed by the
design group Transatlàntic, formed by three Spanish designers: Ramon Benedito (b.
Barcelona, 1945); Lluìs Morillas (b.Barcelona, 1958) and Josep Puig (b.Terrassa, 1955). The
stool was part of the group’s Sensual Furniture project (‘Mobiliaro Sensual: Metamorfosis’),
intended to bring erotic content into stylish furniture. The Frenesí, for example,
has a phallic diagonal support, highlighted comically by a rubber tip, and the leather
seat gathers itself around the sitter’s rear. This is an unusually explicit example of the
provocative, image-driven design typical of 1980s Postmodernism. The Frenesí Bar Stool was one of a group of four pieces designed by the Spanish group
Transatlàtic. The pieces are the Intima (Intimate) Bar, Sedutora (Seductive) Chair, Mesamela
Table, and the Frenesí (Frenzy) Bar Stool. (Source: V&A museum)

The Frenesí or ‘Frenzy’ chair was not designed for a particular interior but for bar use. The ‘design bar’ was a characteristic phenomenon of Spanish Postmodernism. It was a highly-orchestrated and sometimes thematic space for drinking cocktails, seeing, and being seen.

Though such bars existed in Madrid, the most famous and fashionable ones were in Barcelona.
The Frenesí stool has a phallic diagonal support, highlighted comically by a foam rubber tip; the leather seat gathers
itself around the sitter’s rear.