At Design Miami 2022, Nada Debs and Kohler present Transcendence, a one-of-a-kind immersive installation. To emphasise cultural inclusivity, the Levantine designer created a contemporary take on the traditional Middle Eastern hammam for a soothing experience that all could enjoy.
Nada Debs and Kohler present Transcendence
‘Having the opportunity to design a modern hammam at Design Miami truly embodies the sentiment that wellbeing transcends all culture,’ says Debs. To equally draw in critical conversations about sustainability, the installation’s lustrous hand-crafted tiles, designed by Debs and the Kohler WasteLAB team, have been fabricated using landfill materials and glaze originating from Kohler’s manufacturing waste flow.
The crucial aim of Kohler WasteLAB is to apply new manufacturing processes where nothing is wasted. ‘At Kohler, we have a great passion for exploring the nexus between design and environmental sustainability, a passion that is shared by Nada and translated into the hammam and the tiles themselves,' says Laura Kohler, chief sustainability and DEI officer for Kohler Co.
Laid out in typical hammam tradition, Debs has designed three lightly toned chambers taking you through a sensory journey, each dressed appropriately with its own hued tile in arch patterns that share a visual parallel to the hammam’s classical aesthetic.
To start, a darkly elegant Hot Room calls for meditation and disconnect with a sea of jumbled patterns in glazed lake-blues and mirrored edges evoking a peaceful infinity. Moving on to the Warm Room, the walls are adorned in double arched tiles with optic loops in a soft Bone finish, complemented by sounds of water triggering an awareness of self and surrounding. At the rejuvenating stage, the room features a pair of 1920s sinks from Kohler’s archive collection in Spring Green – one of the iconic heritage colours celebrated for the brand’s 150th anniversary. Ending the journey in the elegant Cold Room, you’re prompted to feel spiritually recharged around the central water feature, its glimmering turquoise tiles uniformly arched – all as refreshing and welcoming as the airy portals luring you in to finally engage with the world and social exchange.
Calling her approach ‘handmade and heartmade’, Debs’ global understanding and sensibility of cultures translates beautifully in her experiential concept with Kohler. Aptly in line with this year’s Design Miami theme of 'The Golden Age: Looking to the Future', it’s a tribute to wellbeing and heritage through innovative design and materials: a quiet retreat where we can all find solitude and silence within the chaotic overstimulated labyrinth of design-hungry crowds.
Transcendence is on view as part of Design Miami 2022, until 4 December
Convention Center Drive & 19th Street
Miami Beach, USA
-
Bang & Olufsen’s Recreated Classics series continues with a CD player revivalBang & Olufsen’s Beosystem 9000c music system brings the original digital compact disc format back to life and pairs it with the latest in speaker design
-
A new book highlights the work of Turkish interior designer Zeynep Fadıllıoğlu‘Zeynep Fadıllıoğlu: Luxury Redefined’, published by Rizzoli, traces the career of leading Istanbul-based designer Zeynep Fadillioglu, the first woman to design a mosque in Turkey
-
London gallery Incubator’s six emerging artists to see in spring 2024Incubator's spring programme features six artists in consecutive two-week solo shows at the London, Chiltern Street gallery
-
Kaldewei and e15 come together with a collection of statement bathroom piecesKaldewei and e15 unite with a collection designed by Stefan Diez, featuring furniture and accessories
-
50 years of Agape: exploring five decades of innovative bathroom designItalian bathroom brand Agape turns 50, and founders Emanuele and Giampaolo Benedini celebrate with an exhibition looking back at their personal and professional journey
-
Big bathroom design ideas for 2024The bathroom design trends for 2024, including freestanding elements, rationalist layouts, dramatic lighting and more
-
Kohler’s ‘The Creator’s Journey’ presents artful thinking at Milan Design WeekSalone del Mobile 2023: Kohler’s ‘The Creator’s Journey’ features works by a group of female artists and an installation by sculptor Janet Echelman
-
Kohler and Samuel Ross announce collaborationKohler and Samuel Ross' design studio SR_A announce a collaboration set to be unveiled at Design Miami 2023, focusing on innovation in water experiences
-
Kohler steps into wellness with Sprig, for a mood-boosting bathroom experienceDesign brand Kohler turns to wellness with Sprig, a new branch of the company introducing botanical water infusion to the home
-
Experiencing Transcendence with Kohler at Design Miami 2022Kohler’s take on the hammam by Nada Debs offered sustainability, heritage hues and a moment of spiritual calm at Design Miami 2022
-
Tom Dixon and VitrA introduce the pop art bathroomFun and functionality combine in Tom Dixon’s ‘Liquid’ bathroom collection for VitrA
