{"title":"K562 I-III Utility","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eThe hospital closed in 1986. The chairs continued their service long after the institution they were built to support had disappeared.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"utility-acquired","title":"Utility Acquired","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eAcquired in January 2026 from Adam, an art dealer in Palmdale, who had stored the chairs for several years. The set consisted of three matching chairs carrying Pacoima Memorial Lutheran Hospital inventory tags. Adam had acquired them at an estate sale.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eThe chairs showed extensive signs of use and later neglect. The vinyl upholstery was heavily worn. Water staining, lifting veneer, and cracks in the plywood were present throughout the set. Photographs published by Adam show the chairs in much better condition, suggesting that much of the damage occurred during his storage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eDespite their condition, the chairs remained structurally sound. The frames were stable, the molded plywood components retained their shape, and the hospital inventory tags, MTM inscriptions, and Thonet manufacturer labels survived.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TheKarst","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52491513954616,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1002\/2086\/2776\/files\/image2.jpg?v=1781763611"},{"product_id":"utility-in-work","title":"Utility Research","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eThe chairs were used at Pacoima Memorial Lutheran Hospital in the San Fernando Valley. Inventory tags attached to the underside identify them as institutional furniture and carry the numbers 0526, 0546, and 0573. Founded in response to the 1957 Pacoima air disaster, the hospital served the community from 1960 until its closure in 1986. In 1983 it was reorganized and renamed Lake View Medical Center, operating under that name for only three years before bankruptcy forced its closure. The site was later converted into a residential treatment facility operated by Phoenix House, which established its Lake View Terrace program there in 1994. The disaster later entered popular culture through the film La Bamba, which combined elements of the Pacoima collision with the separate plane crash that killed Ritchie Valens.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eA tag attached to the chairs reads: “Thonet, One Park Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016. The best known name in contract furniture since 1830.” The chairs were manufactured by Thonet Industries, Inc., the American branch of the furniture company founded by Michael Thonet. Although produced as modern contract furniture in the United States, they remained part of the Thonet tradition. Unlike the company's nineteenth-century bent-beech chairs, these examples were manufactured from molded plywood and veneer. Their lightweight structure, curved components, and economical use of material reflect a design language developed for durability, efficiency, and large-scale institutional use. All three chairs carry large black marker inscriptions reading “MTM,” whose meaning remains unknown.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eWater staining, veneer failure, and cracking of the plywood suggest a period of storage in damp conditions, likely after the chairs left the hospital. The surviving hospital tags, worn surfaces, and accumulated alterations record decades of practical use within a system of care.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TheKarst","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52491519263032,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1002\/2086\/2776\/files\/img.jpg?v=1781763554"},{"product_id":"utility-revived","title":"Utility Revived","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eThe original upholstery and the wooden boards supporting it were removed, exposing the underlying structure. Lifting veneer was stabilized and reattached where necessary to prevent further loss. No structural repairs were required, as the frames remained stable and intact.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eNew acrylic seats and backrests were installed using existing mounting holes. Their form was derived from the original wooden boards, which were identical across all three chairs. The original screws and bolts were cleaned of rust and protected with beeswax. The intervention exposed construction details that had previously been concealed, including leg screws that protrude through the frame and were partially threaded into the wooden seat board.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eHospital inventory tags, MTM black marker inscriptions, and Thonet manufacturer tags were preserved. Some of the Thonet tags survive only in fragmentary condition, reflecting decades of use and wear.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;\"\u003eWear, damage, repairs, and institutional markings remain visible, preserving evidence of the chairs’ long service life within a system of care. The heavily worn vinyl upholstery suggests that the chairs remained in use after leaving the hospital, possibly in a domestic or commercial environment, where they continued to serve beyond their institutional life.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TheKarst","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52491520508216,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1002\/2086\/2776\/files\/DSC_6266retouched.jpg?v=1781763395"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1002\/2086\/2776\/collections\/DSC_6271_2053c04b-f77c-460e-9c8b-65ad3fcf6364.jpg?v=1781763468","url":"https:\/\/thekarst.com\/collections\/k562-i-iii-utility.oembed","provider":"TheKarst","version":"1.0","type":"link"}