Please do not touch.
The work engages with design as a system embedded within society, and therefore inherently connected to and responsible for it. The modular USM Haller system is extended through the addition of wooden legs and a series of so-called charms, small, playful attachments made from minerals. These interventions shift the system from within. They follow its logic while simultaneously altering it, making the object perceptible as something constructed from fundamental materials.
At its core lies an understanding of freedom not as absolute independence, but as a practice always grounded in relationships. Design is not framed here as the expression of an autonomous, “free” genius, but as an activity operating within complex conditions. Decisions emerge within tensions between durability and affordability, between ethical production and economic efficiency, between openness of use and financial viability. Freedom, therefore, is not defined by the absence of constraints, but by the conscious negotiation of them.
The system is extended on two levels: firstly through wooden legs made from split oak and ash. The material remains raw, and the process is visible — traces of splitting and turning form part of the object itself. Secondly, through five “charms” that occupy open points within the system, activating the gaps in its original connections. These carry mineral ores that refer to the material basis of the system: iron, copper, zinc and chromium as essential components of industrial production.
The choice of materials creates a deliberate tension. While the chromed system presents a smooth, almost dematerialised surface that conceals its origins, wood and ore make their production visible. They point to resources and global interdependencies that usually remain hidden within the finished object. In this way, the supposedly “timeless” system is re-situated within a material and historical context.
Within this juxtaposition, an expanded notion of freedom is articulated: as the ability not only to use existing systems, but to question and reconfigure them. The proposed elements are not conceived as finished products, but as a proposition, an attempt to render the system more open and legible.
Johanna Seelemann is a designer working between Reykjavík and Leipzig, with an international practice spanning product design, spatial installations and strategic consultancy. Her studio collaborates with institutions, brands and cultural organizations to bring rigorous thinking and material sensitivity to projects across scales — from objects to exhibitions to long-term design strategy. Her work has been exhibited at the Design Museum London, V&A, and Villa Noailles and Wallpaper* named her among the creative leaders expanding how design is practiced today. Recent nominations include the Icelandic Design Award 2025, the Dutch Design Awards Emerging Talent Award 2025, and the Ralph Saltzman Prize 2025 at the Design Museum London.
Please do not touch.
The work engages with design as a system embedded within society, and therefore inherently connected to and responsible for it. The modular USM Haller system is extended through the addition of wooden legs and a series of so-called charms, small, playful attachments made from minerals. These interventions shift the system from within. They follow its logic while simultaneously altering it, making the object perceptible as something constructed from fundamental materials.
At its core lies an understanding of freedom not as absolute independence, but as a practice always grounded in relationships. Design is not framed here as the expression of an autonomous, “free” genius, but as an activity operating within complex conditions. Decisions emerge within tensions between durability and affordability, between ethical production and economic efficiency, between openness of use and financial viability. Freedom, therefore, is not defined by the absence of constraints, but by the conscious negotiation of them.
The system is extended on two levels: firstly through wooden legs made from split oak and ash. The material remains raw, and the process is visible — traces of splitting and turning form part of the object itself. Secondly, through five “charms” that occupy open points within the system, activating the gaps in its original connections. These carry mineral ores that refer to the material basis of the system: iron, copper, zinc and chromium as essential components of industrial production.
The choice of materials creates a deliberate tension. While the chromed system presents a smooth, almost dematerialised surface that conceals its origins, wood and ore make their production visible. They point to resources and global interdependencies that usually remain hidden within the finished object. In this way, the supposedly “timeless” system is re-situated within a material and historical context.
Within this juxtaposition, an expanded notion of freedom is articulated: as the ability not only to use existing systems, but to question and reconfigure them. The proposed elements are not conceived as finished products, but as a proposition, an attempt to render the system more open and legible.
Johanna Seelemann is a designer working between Reykjavík and Leipzig, with an international practice spanning product design, spatial installations and strategic consultancy. Her studio collaborates with institutions, brands and cultural organizations to bring rigorous thinking and material sensitivity to projects across scales — from objects to exhibitions to long-term design strategy. Her work has been exhibited at the Design Museum London, V&A, and Villa Noailles and Wallpaper* named her among the creative leaders expanding how design is practiced today. Recent nominations include the Icelandic Design Award 2025, the Dutch Design Awards Emerging Talent Award 2025, and the Ralph Saltzman Prize 2025 at the Design Museum London.