Estragon is a furniture piece comprised of 22 identical plywood forms, based on a character from Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. The character is a metaphor for ‘all of humanity,’ and is depicted through immobility, repetition, interchangeability, inaction, parallelism, and sore feet.

Made of simple plywood shapes with standard assembly, Estragon is one of a series of special locally-produced sculptural furniture projects originally designed for the Armory Show for use in the fair’s lounges and communal spaces. The identical forms can rest in a range of positions of differing heights, adapting to different uses.

The multiples were a collaboration between BSC Architecture and Brooklyn Woods, a program of Brooklyn Workforce Innovations whose mission is to create living-wage career opportunities for disadvantaged New Yorkers. They were fabricated locally by Brooklyn Woods, with the intention that future production would be carried out through their program that trains unemployed and low-income New Yorkers in woodworking skills, providing them with a solid foundation to begin a career in woodworking, cabinetmaking and fabrication.

Estragon at The Armory Show 2014

Estragon at The Armory Show 2014

Estragon Pieces ready for assembly

Production of Estragon at Brookyln Woods

Assembled Estragon at Brooklyn Woods