Iconic Yoda Chair Used by Obama, Trudeau, Xi Jinping and 18 Other World Leaders

Having wrapped up the annual APEC economic conference in Manila, President Obama, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and other word leaders from Russia to Chile will walk away with more than just plans for fiscal cooperation — this year, they’ll get one of the design world’s most celebrated tokens, the iconic Yoda chair by Kenneth Cobonpue.

On display in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Yoda is a masterwork by Kenneth Cobonpue, long considered the maestro of natural materials whom Time magazine dubbed “Rattan’s first virtuoso”. Encasing a Pilipino-inspired dining table, the Yoda now returns to the respective homes of Presidents and Prime Ministers from the 21 member countries.

Aptly tapped as Creative Director, Cobonpue’s striking design inspiration for the arena came from the famous Banaue Rice Fields of his native Philippines.

Who knew that a common denominator between President Obama, Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Jinping (besides of course, the weight of an entire nation on their shoulders) is the Yoda chair!