Pentatonic and Natalia Vodianova launch innovative face mask
Natalia Vodianova and Pentatonic unveil Masuku one, their new high-tech, sustainable mask design featuring state of the art filtration system and made in England
Design firm Pentatonic and entrepreneur and philanthropist Natalia Vodianova have launched Masuku, a new brand offering an innovative and sustainable face mask concept. Named after the Japanese word for ‘mask’, Masuku nods to the importance of the face mask in Asian cultures, where it is commonly worn as a sign of respect for the community’s health. Its initial goal to create an anti-pollution mask has acquired new urgency in this pandemic; and its inaugural product, Masuku One, combines cutting-edge technological innovation and a sleek design.
Natalia Vodianova and Masuku: the search for a sustainable face mask
Vodianova began to search for a sustainable alternative to everyday masks in 2016, which led her to connect with Pentatonic, a design and technology innovator whose projects have material research at their core. The studio has created objects from recycled smartphone glass, cigarette filters and e-waste, also working on objects and furniture designs with the likes of Snarkitecture and Pharrell Williams (most recently creating a recycled dining kit in collaboration with both).
‘Natalia and I first met in 2018; at that point she and her team had already scoped the mask market for sustainable suppliers,’ recalls Johann Boedecker, CEO and co-founder of Pentatonic. ‘But there was simply nothing out there that lived up to Natalia’s vision of a truly well-designed and absolutely environmental mask.’ The pair joined forces with the aim of reinventing the category ‘from the ground up’, and after two years of development, Masuku was born.
‘As living beings, we need air even more than water or shelter but, due to a rise of allergies, air pollution and increased risk of pandemics, it is quickly becoming a risk factor too,’ continues Boedecker. The team’s focus was to create masks that become an effortless essential in our lives, much like sunscreen and filtered water.
Masuku One: design and manufacturing
The Masuku One features a ‘spacer mesh’ fabric cover, made from 100 per cent recycled performance polymer and optimised for airflow. The material is heat-pressed into a shell-like shape and equipped with soft guard fabric on the side in contact with the skin. The ear-loops are also made from recycled materials, and feature four 360-degree joints for a personalised fit.
Every material is either bio-based or recyclable at the end of its life, and every manufacturing aspect was calibrated to achieve maximum comfort and carefully considered with sustainability in mind. ‘When I started the project, I knew that developing a highly sophisticated air filtration system was pointless if not fully sustainable at the core,’ explains Vodianova. ‘Today our masks offer a truly safe and comfortable breathing experience, with no impact on the planet.’ Boedecker notes that readily available recyclable filters did not offer an adequate performance, but ‘with our high-end compostable polymer filtration membrane we finally struck gold. We built the daily range and the Masuku One filter around that innovation: compostable filtration using over 100 times less filtration material by weight than common mask filters.’ To produce the masks’ nano-fibre filtration material, the company set up a state-of-the-art AirLab in Yorkshire, with further nearby locations dedicated to assembly and production of Masuku products.
RELATED STORY
‘Between the fit and comfort, filtration and breathability, we created a mask that you can wear for many hours a day without undue inconvenience,’ he continues. ‘We also invested a lot of time in creating very complex tooling to have three-dimensionally curved surfaces without creases or folds. So the outer fabric is beautifully contoured and sharp.’
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Concludes Vodianova: ‘The air we breathe affects every organ and cell in our bodies. I sincerely hope, in the future, masks will not be needed. Until then, we want Masuku to be the most technological, sustainable option to breathe clean air, while respecting it.’
INFORMATION
Masuku One, £49 (£22 for monthly subscription)
Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.
-
Focal launches Diva Utopia, wireless speakers for aesthetically minded audiophiles
Focal’s felt-clad Diva Utopia speakers bring high-fidelity wireless sound to a huge range of audio applications
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Watch: Jamie Dornan takes a bath in Le Courbusier’s villa for Loewe Perfumes
Jamie Dornan stars alongside Sophie Wilde in the new Loewe Perfumes 2024 campaign, shot by David Sims in Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye
By Hannah Tindle Published
-
One to watch: Casey Zablocki’s Rocky Mountain surroundings feed into his vast sculptural work
Montana-based artist Casey Zablocki uses one of America’s largest kilns to create monumental ceramic, functional sculptures
By Dan Howarth Published
-
Can design help us better understand the future?
Yosuke Ushigome, the self-styled ‘creative technologist’ and director at design studio Takram on the power of speculative design to make ideas tangible, humanise big data, and encourage healthier behaviours
By Jens H Jensen Last updated
-
Portable handwashing station wins Life-Enhancer of the Year: Wallpaper* Design Awards 2021
Responding swiftly to a public health emergency, Lagos designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello devised a portable, modular handwashing station that draws on local materials and manufacturing expertise
By TF Chan Last updated
-
Sarah Douglas rewinds a very different year of design at Wallpaper*
Wallpaper’s Editor-in-Chief looks back on her favourite editorial moments from 2020 – a year when the design world could have stood still, but kept turning, powered by its incredible community
By Sarah Douglas Last updated
-
‘The Lockdown Dialogues’ explores design in the age of isolation
The series was born out of conversations between Zanat founder Orhan Niksic and international designers including Ilse Crawford and Jean-Marie Massaud
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Mark Dalton on helping people navigate a pandemic through design
Design Emergency began as an Instagram Live series during the Covid-19 pandemic and is now becoming a wake-up call to the world, and compelling evidence of the power of design to effect radical and far-reaching change. Co-founders Paola Antonelli and Alice Rawsthorn took over the October 2020 issue of Wallpaper* – available to download free here – to present stories of design’s new purpose and promise. Here, Alice Rawsthorn talks to creative director Mark Dalton
By Alice Rawsthorn Last updated
-
Architect Michael Murphy on designing healthcare systems
Design Emergency began as an Instagram Live series during the Covid-19 pandemic and is now becoming a wake-up call to the world, and compelling evidence of the power of design to effect radical and far-reaching change. Co-founders Paola Antonelli and Alice Rawsthorn took over the October 2020 issue of Wallpaper* to present stories of design’s new purpose and promise. Here, Paola Antonelli talks to architect Michael Murphy
By Paola Antonelli Last updated
-
Wallpaper* and AHEC announce a new initiative to support design’s next generation
Designers will be offered a platform to conceive, create and manufacture a new piece of furniture or object inspired by life in a pandemic world
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Paola Antonelli and Alice Rawsthorn on design as a powerful tool of change
Design Emergency began as an Instagram Live series during the Covid-19 pandemic and is now becoming a wake-up call to the world, and compelling evidence of the power of design to effect radical and far-reaching change. Co-founders Paola Antonelli and Alice Rawsthorn took over the October 2020 issue of Wallpaper* – available to download free here – to present stories of design’s new purpose and promise
By Nick Compton Published