For over six years, I ran a furniture shop that I started in Kaaka’ako, near the Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. During that time in the late 1980s, Hawaii was experiencing a boom that fueled expansion and supported a great deal of quality custom work. I was able to design and build the executive offices of the Bank of Hawaii, and this set of Postmodern Federal chairs were a part of that commission.

Departing from a classic Federal design, I clarified the lines and eliminated the carving that would have detailed the original period design. The ebonized wood is again a contemporary treatment, never to be seen in Federal chairs. We chose a muted damask fabric to contrast with the blackened wood, and maintain the stark postmodern expression.