When an earthquake hits, most of us know to run for a doorframe or duck next to a desk. Protecting your noggin should be the priority, and the Mamoris chair wants to help: This clever chair quickly disassembles into a brain-and-neck-protecting helmet.
Mamoris — named for the Japanese words mamoru (to protect) and isu (chair) — debuted at this year’s Tokyo Designers Week, over two years since the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami decimated large swaths of Japan. While recovery and rebuilding efforts are still underway, designers are also taking on the challenge of how to address the realities of post-disaster living.
Johnny Strategy of Spoon & Tamago has rounded up an impressive collection of responsive work, from graphics to cardboard shelters to photographs of radioactive mushrooms, as well as proactive efforts — like Mamoris.
The headgear detaches with a simple twist of the knob embedded into the top of the seat and, when flipped over, the backrest acts as added protection for your neck and shoulders. Bonus: the whole thing has a kind of Darth Vader/stormtrooper visual appeal. Bummer: it also looks a teensy bit like a toilet.
Maybe you could even stick some small, lightweight supplies in the bowl before attaching to the frame, ensuring you’d have a torch or bottle of water on hand when the world starts shaking. Considering the increasing intensity of the disasters Mother Nature’s been unleashing of late, these types of disaster preparedness and domestic decor mash-ups could become a lot more common. [Spoon & Tamago]