In 2014, we were asked to replace the chairs in the college dining room. Designer James Ryan adapted his Grace chair design to suit the college’s requirements. The chairs had to be able to withstand the frequent use they would receive from the students. This was a large project for our workshop. We made the chairs in batches that added up to one hundred and eleven chairs in total.
We were heartened that this was the second set for chairs made for Magdalen College by the Barnsley Workshop. In 1971 we had made fifty-two chairs for the college’s common room. It is a testament to the quality of those chairs that, after more than forty years, they have lasted well and are still in regular use. We expect both sets of chairs to be used daily for many years to come.
