I am currently searching for items of nostalgia, that have a bit of a story behind them, as part of the research process for my new work Lofts, Garages and Basements: Treasure and Tat. Last week I had the pleasure of having lunch with and interviewing Sarah Hurst. One of the items Sarah showed me was a chair, made for her by her late husband Nick Hurst. The story is as so...
Early on in their relationship Nick was training as a master craftsman in wood, and decided to make Sarah a chair. But it wasn't just any old chair. It was a chair specifically tailored to Sarah's bottom. One afternoon whilst at the university Nick invited Sarah in to his work studio. There, he drew around her behind (in order to make the dimensions of the seat identical to her bottom). He did this in front of the entire class. Sarah remembers saying to him during the process What are you doing?... In public love...? It's a bit much. Sarah has kept and treasured the chair ever since.
This is Sarah, her son PJ, and her specially tailored chair.