'It happened two weeks ago, but it feels like two days,' says Sandro Tothill, co-founder, along with his wife Marivi Calvo, of the art-lamp company LZF. He is referring to the landscape of topped cars, shattered walls, and orange groves strewn with debris that he sees on his drive to work. 'The clean-ups have started in the villages, but not the countryside yet, so we have these constant reminders.' LZF operates from Chiva, one of the ground-zero townships of the catastrophic floods that swamped the region of Valencia on October 29. That day, his habitual 15-minute drive home took several hours as his car became trapped in a convergence of overflowing riverways. 'It felt like we had been hit by a tsunami,' he recalls.

Valencia’s design community unites

Valencia is home to leading furniture brands such as Andreu World and Gandia Blasco, along with countless smaller enterprises and craft and ceramic workshops; as such, it is known as the capital of the interior design and décor industries in Spain. Away from the smart showrooms and furniture stores of the capital, which remained relatively dry, manufacturing takes place in factories and small set-ups on industrial estates in the outlying towns. Tothill says several of his suppliers, from painters to crafters of his lamps’ signature wooden veneers, have been washed away. 'I am not sure what we are going to do,' he confesses.

As the mud dries and finger-pointing fills Spanish headlines, local design firms are rallying to raise funds and rebuild. Renowned for his op-art installations and sculptures in piercing colour spectrums, Felipe Pantone witnessed the machinery, materials and artwork stored in his warehouse-studio submerged in sludge. Three days later, he launched ‘Auction for Action’, a charity platform where people can bid for collector-standard art and objects.

'Since the project began, Felipe has been glued to his phone 24/7, talking with artists, friends, acquaintances, and collectors to encourage them to participate in the auction in one way or another,' says the project’s manager Alvaro Gongora. 'The response from everyone has been fantastic.' Currently, there are about 80 pieces for sale and new ones are added regularly. Valencia resident Jaime Hayon donated a painting titled ‘Darkness Blossom’ which explores themes of growth and renewal amidst darkness, to the project. Other artists reflect Pantone’s roots in urban art with works from Miss Vann and Okuda San Miguel.

Also born via Whatsapp and in record speed, Interioristas en Acción (IED) is a collective that aims to refit washed out homes. Coordinated by the lighting company Peralta Vivavi, over 300 interior design studios have signed up. The premise is simple; members of the collective reach out to their own network of suppliers for donations of stock, be it fridges, sofas or plumbing parts. Stock is delivered to Valencia’s trade fair building, and is then distributed to families after their needs have been assessed by an Interioristas en Acción volunteer.

Tangible signs of recovery however will take time. 'The biggest problem now is logistics,' continues Tothill. ‘There is no railway, no public transport and no centralised communication.' LZF’s offices and warehouse got off lightly, unlike the home of one of its star designers. LZF is promoting three luminaires by Ray Powers, all bestsellers, at a 30% discount to help the Powers get back on their feet. While solidarity is important in these early days of course, Tothill is adamant that sustained confidence is what will pull industry back.

'Our clients are very understanding of delays, but we want everyone to know that we are ready to get back to work. We need work, not just for us, but also our suppliers. We need business. The future is about rebuilding the community through work.'

lzf-lamps.com
auctionforaction.art
interioristasenaccion.com

‘I’ve been creating a lot of line extensions lately,’ says Spanish designer and artist, Jaime Hayon in his only interview during Copenhagen’s 3 Days of Design. As part of a long-standing relationship with Danish brand Fritz Hansen, he designed the new Fri sofa (available from September 2024) as a companion to the Fri lounge chair originally designed in 2015.

There’s also a new addition to the crafted Analog dining table (2014), now reimagined as a low coffee table and side table in lacquered walnut and ash tabletops set on solid walnut and ash legs respectively, and the side table in FSC certified solid oak.

Jaime Hayon and Fritz Hansen reveal new furniture

‘I believe that certain projects can be better if you consider them again,’ he suggests. ‘We had a lot of success with the dining tables and thought with the system we developed cast aluminium fixings for the angled legs, and the table’s form – it’s so nice and spacious – that we could create it as a low coffee and side table too.’

Hayon’s been working with Fritz Hansen since 2011 and appreciates the dialogue they have. ‘The Fritz Hansen exercise is so interesting, the testing, the conversations, and the thinking around the smallest details. You know they’re doing it right in terms of materials, construction, sustainability.’

With that in mind, Hayon and Fritz Hansen spent several years working on the Analog table’s form. ‘The table has a strange geometry with six sides,’ says Hayon. ‘It’s hard to say what that geometry is, I invented it. It’s not a rectangle, it’s not a circle or oval but it’s about a shared geometry. The sides are a little organic.’ Likewise, the Fri sofa, crafted with a timber base, aluminium legs and upholstered over moulded foam, takes on the sculptural, generous proportions of the lounge chair, a 1.5-seater. ‘I remember seeing the chair in the American Airlines lounge, watching people use it: putting their bags on it, reading with their kids. I understood its success was in the proportions.’

Hayon has applied the same principles to the 2.5-seater sofa. ‘It’s like creating a sculpture, you look at it in the round, the shadows, how it sits in the space, making adjustments to ensure the proportions work.’ Where both the tables and sofa speak to his existing piece, is in a convivial sensibility, the bringing people together, sharing experiences.

Fritz Hansen’s head of design, Christian Andersen, explains that the starting point is always ensuring the brand and designers are sympatico. With Jaime that connection was immediate. ‘His language is playful, but he’s good at elegance and good at proportions. Also, he’s very good at interiors, understanding space. I see him as more of a craftsman than a furniture designer. That’s probably why it’s a completely different process working with Jaime,’ Andersen explains. 

‘We prepare a brief for him and then he designs on the spot with us. He draws, we iterate, it’s a really live thing – it’s like we’re in the artist studio with him; a very dynamic way of working.’ Hayon sums up the relationship. ‘The work I do with any brand is about living, sharing spaces, sharing moments. That’s very Fritz Hansen – creating harmony in spaces with objects and people and that’s very me as well.’

fritzhansen.com

Marking the hotel group’s first opening in the UK, Art’otel Battersea makes its debut in London with an immersive interior design by Spanish artist and designer Jaime Hayon. Following the group’s concept to fill its hotels with an eclectic mix of art and objects, Hayon curated an artistic selection that converses with his carefully considered interiors throughout the hotel. 

Open from 12 December 2022 for first stays, the hotel’s official opening is planned for February 2023, when guests will be able to enjoy the immersive spaces, take in the breathtaking views and make the most of the Battersea surroundings. 

Art’otel Battersea: an immersive marriage of art and design 

Jaime Hayon’s interiors for Art’otel Battersea feature a design language based on a well-considered palette and curved lines. ‘I tried to be gentle with my design of the interiors,’ says Hayon. ‘The forms are a response to the space itself and its constraints,’ he adds, nodding to the serpentine shape of the building that houses the hotel, Battersea Roof Gardens by Foster + Partners. But every element of the design is also quintessentially Hayon: there is geometry and order, but the resulting effect is an enveloping interior that feels organic and welcoming.

Guests enter through a lounge where the designer created separate sitting areas featuring Hayon furniture for Fritz Hansen, Arflex and Wittman, divided by bespoke brass shelving (‘classical comfort with a bit of action’, as the designer describes it) and facing a cabinet with a display of art objects that include antique pieces, Hayon’s own ceramics and designs by friends and collaborators. In the spirit of the hotel group’s art calling, he commissioned a series of photographic works by Dutch artist duo Klunderbie, surrealist portraits that play with British iconography as a tribute to the location.

The mirrored check-in desk features a sinuous design lacquered in light teal topped with lamps made in Venice; ‘It’s vintage Hayon,’ says the designer, explaining it’s inspired by a piece he originally created 20 years ago (see more vintage Hayon at his retrospective, ‘InfinitaMente’, in Valencia until 16 April 2023). ‘Checking in is the most boring experience,’ notes the designer. ‘To me, this is giving a bit of love to the guests arriving at the hotel.’

Special attention was paid to the hotel’s ground floor restaurant, Tozi Grand Cafe, a circular room conceived as a theatrical space by Hayon. Here, the surrealist theme continues with a series of red objects hovering over the space shaped as stylised facial features, and tapestries inspired by food and café culture made in the Netherlands using recycled yarn. 

‘There are several stories throughout these interiors,’ says Hayon, who considered every element with guests’ experience in mind. ‘Every space was an opportunity to make something special: there is a real research on many elements like colours and materials to make things comfortable.’

artotellondonbattersea.com

nfinitaMente’ brings together two decades of work by Spanish designer and artist Jaime Hayon, for an exhibition that is on view at the Centre del Carme Cultura Contemporània (CCCC) in Valencia until 16 April 2023. 

Curated by Hayon Studio and organised as part of the official programme of World Design Capital Valencia 2022, the retrospective exhibition sweeps us into Hayon’s universe, presenting sculptures, objects, installations and furniture, including Mediterranean Baroque an installation first presented in 2003 at David Gill Gallery in London, one of the artist’s first gallery exhibitions. 

Born in Madrid, Hayon has a studio in Valencia as well as Turin, Italy, and this is his first large-format museum exhibition in Spain. ‘InfinitaMente’ translates as infinity or infinite, an appropriate term to describe Hayon’s creative practice that often feels boundless in terms of its reach. Like the designer’s work, the exhibition moves naturally between design objects, furniture, art, and craft, with rooms divided into various themes that give focus to his extensive career.  

The Fantasy presents five large and colourful paintings featuring floating figures, animals, elements of nature and references to the home; facing the paintings is Fed Up, a large, baby blue sculpture of a reclining animal/human figure with his hand on his forehand as if exasperated or delighted with the paintings he beholds. The humour and unexpectedness of it set the tone for the exhibition. 

‘InfinitaMente’ gets up close and personal with Hayon’s creative process. In Mesamachine + sketchbooks, we are treated to a look at his thick notebooks filled with drawings, collages, photographs and notes, as well as loose drawings, while Cabinets of Curiosities is an intimate installation that collects dozens of objects, notes, samples, prototypes and materials from Hayon’s studio as well as his home and show his range of influences, from Japanese manga to graffiti and skateboard culture.

Complex, playful and certainly radical in many ways, Hayon’s work is hard to define and easy to love. The Crystal Room brings together a selection of unique and limited-edition glassworks, including collaborations with Baccarat and Murano. Furniture pieces from collaborations with brands such as Fritz Hansen, Ceccotti Collezioni, Magis and BD Barcelona are featured across the various installations. 

On view for the first time in Spain is Masquemask, an installation of seven large tapestry masks designed for the Lodz Design Museum in Poland and made by local artisans. Hayon was inspired by a visit to an edition of the Lodz Design Festival where he had an opportunity to learn about the city’s long traditions with textiles. He designed the seven tapestries for the 2019 edition of the festival, each tapestry depicting its own unique mask-face and colour schemes. At the CCCC, the tapestries are hung in the main space of the room and visitors engage with them directly, seeing different viewpoints and facial expressions as they walk through the room.

The mask is a key image in Hayon’s world, decorating the surfaces of jars, vases and wall sculptures. With references to Mexican wrestling masks, pre-Columbian sculptures, Japanese anime, Chinese figurines and African masks, among others, Hayon has noted, ’The masks have always represented a very direct connection with culture, thus expressing the lives of whole civilisations. They were used both in the time of war and peace, daily and on special occasions. This is a very mysterious and fascinating topic.’ 

‘InfinitaMente’ is a comprehensive exhibition that sheds new light on Hayon’s expansive career and, above all, is a joyous visual delight.

‘InfinitaMente’ is on view untilm 16 April 2023 at CCCC Valencia

hayonstudio.com

Centre del Carme Cultura Contemporània
Carrer del Museu, 2, 4
Valencia
Spain

Twenty-three years since The Standard opened its first hotel in Los Angeles, and changed the course of hospitality ever since, the iconic hotel group has unveiled its first Asian property, The Standard Bangkok, with interiors designed in collaboration with Jaime Hayon. Located within the King Power Mahanakhon skyscraper in Bangkok’s bustling Central Business District, the hotel blends The Standard's design hallmarks with Thai cultural features to transport visitors into a fantasy world that seduces on all levels.

Welcoming yet still filled with wonder, The Standard Bangkok brings a fresh twist to its familiar aesthetic. With Hayon at the helm, whimsical notions abound, from the large artisan-made rattan lamps that create a canopy above the main entrance to the shelves in the lobby adorned with porcelain vessels and objects from both local and international artists. The public spaces have been realised in rich swathes of colour and textures to complement the vibrant city location. Equal parts old and new, the hotel’s multi-layered appeal riffs on the tension between the contemporary and traditional.

‘Bangkok is such a dynamic and interesting city, with so much going on in music, gastronomy, design and the arts,’ says Hayon, who worked with The Standard’s in-house design team to create the Bangkok hotel’s interiors. ‘I wanted to bring this vibe into the design of the hotel and to create a hotel that has an interaction with the cultural background of what is going on in the community.

‘Art and folklore are a great inspiration in this project. Right when you enter the check-in, immediately you can tell there is a care about the arts. There is a care about the objects. We went around the city selecting objects and elements, and designed things that would be combined with some vintage furniture, created specific kinds of lights and selected pieces of art to be combined together with the colourful and organic interiors. In Thailand, you have this feeling of the jungle and nature. We incorporated that symbolism throughout the lobby to make it a green oasis in the heart of urban Bangkok.’

Meticulous attention to detail is evident at every turn. From the exquisite, reflective interiors of Ojo, a Mexican-inspired restaurant situated on the building’s 76th floor, to the playful glamour of Tease, a surrealistic tea room inspired by Josef Hoffmann and 1920s Vienna, thus drenched in black and white, each corner of the hotel has been lovingly carved into its own immersive experience.

This extends to each of the 155 guestrooms, the pool on a roof terrace and Sky Beach, the hotel’s rooftop bar (also the highest in all of Bangkok).

‘With each of our hotels, we learn and evolve,’ says Verena Haller, chief design officer of Standard International Management. ‘To be able to create a flagship hotel in Bangkok, in such an iconic building, was a challenge and journey. We created this property in the thick of Covid, during a time when nobody could travel. We needed to go deep and that extra effort made this hotel so special.

‘I truly believe we created a design and environment that you don’t want to leave and will not be looked at as just a hotel but a restaurant, a bar, a lounge and a gym you want to come to over and over again. More than ever, travellers are looking for an experience, places that inspire and stimulate, for sensitive and thoughtful interactions. With this hotel, we wanted to create a place that inspires and feels like home.’ 

INFORMATION

standardhotels.com/bangkok

ADDRESS

The Standard Bangkok
King Power Mahanakhon
114 Narathiwas Road
Silom, Bangrak
Bangkok, Thailand

View Google Maps

Those planning a playdate with a difference need look no further than the recently opened Hyundai Museum of Kids’ Books & Art (MOKA) in Namyangju, east of Seoul. Jaime Hayon, the design world’s wizard of wit, whimsy and wonder, was given free rein to conjure up a children’s playground, sculpture garden and library for the museum, with a brief to encourage ‘nature literacy’ among city dwellers. The result sees Hayon’s signature fanciful characterisation – more usually lent to figurines, vases and installations – let loose for play time, and is set to enchant grown-ups and children alike.

Titled MOKA Play, the playground is populated by four colourful and captivating sculptural characters – a super-sized sausage dog, a trumpeting elephant, a giant llama and a reposing Pinocchio-style figure with a seesaw balanced across its ankle. Their rounded edges, slide tongues, and tunnel bellies invite clambering, creeping and crawling. Beneath a glass roof, amphitheatre-style seating encloses the space and geometric shapes spill across the flooring and surrounds.

Wrapped around the upper walls is a mural of Hayon’s vivid sketches. ‘It is really a crazy project all on its own,’ says Hayon of the mural. ‘I was in the middle of the lockdown in Spain, and I had a lot of time, and I started to draw on my terrace, very freely. These drawings were talking about evolution. The mural is also a chance for Hayon to share a glimpse of his design process; the evolution from two-dimensional sketch to three-dimensional creation is something he wonders if children may pick up on.

From here, families can stroll through to the calmer, more reflective space of the similarly glass-roofed but more neutral-toned Jaime Hayon Garden for some chill-out time. Creature-shaped granite sculptures with brass details, and a head-shaped fountain stand amid soothing planting. One of the creatures, half bird, half hut, conceals a café, another an educational space. ‘Through the strength of the characters that populate the space, the garden proposes a path towards thought and emotion,’ says Hayon. ‘Gardens were built in the past to be areas where people could concentrate and come back to nature even for a few minutes in the day. If I think about what I like about classical gardens, I think we’re bringing that in a modern way into this one,’ says Hayon.

Rounding off the designer’s trio of spaces is MOKA Library, where some 2,000 nature-themed children’s books are housed enticingly at little-people height within snaking shelves. ‘Sometimes libraries can be the opposite of spaces that kids want to be. I wanted to create a space kids would want to come running to,’ says Hayon. A ceiling with built-in artwork is supported by giant figures, arms aloft, encircled by banquette seating that they wear like skirts. ‘There were structural columns in the space,’ explains the designer, ‘so we made these character-looking elements that hold the ceiling. The ceiling has a very artistic approach: a drawing becomes three-dimensional giving a rich texture to the space, and is also an interesting way to conceal technical elements.’ Alongside the library is another educational hub, and an ‘art lab’ that will host nature-themed exhibitions.

MOKA Garden, as Hayon’s three spaces are collectively known, is part of MOKA’s second location in South Korea. ‘They did not want conventional,’ affirm the Hayon Studio team of the client’s intent. We think they found their man – and the perfect play date.

INFORMATION

MOKA is at Hyundai Premium Outlet Space 1 in Namyangju, South Korea.

hmoka.org
hayonstudio.com

The Spanish, who are renowned for their social inclinations, have faced some of the strictest restrictions in Europe; nevertheless their overwhelmingly refreshing outlook seems to be getting them through, with national lockdown measures expected to ease in early May.

Jaime Hayon has been keeping busy in Valencia, Already an avid drawer, he has found time to draw even more and focus on future projects: objects and light fixtures for his interior commissions, a sculpture for the city of Seoul, and a hotel in Lisbon. He’s also found time to revisit previous furniture collections, for clients such as Fritz Hansen, &Tradition, and various Italian brands, to see if they can be improved, or better yet, expanded.

He continues to work closely with his team, all at home in Italy and Spain, to discuss and shape ideas; and so far the relationship with his clients hasn’t suffered despite the circumstances. ‘Digital presentations consisting of sketches and renders can translate an idea perfectly. With clients in so many countries, showing my work this way is not a novelty,’ he reflects. The only area that may suffer is production; most artisans are working from home with reduced capabilities, and relying on video calls to communicate with Hayon and his team – which may work in some, but not all cases.

MUT Design, another Valencia based studio, are keen to learn from the current situation; they see the new challenges not as problems but opportunities to adapt and rethink the way they work. Founders Alberto Sánchez and Eduardo Villalón are focusing on their roles as art directors for Spanish brands GAN and Harmony, which are facing obstacles with their upcoming catalogues. Like many designers, Sánchez and Villalón have had projects cancelled, mostly in relation to Salone del Mobile, but in turn, have invested their attention on longer-term projects such as a hotel in Malta, and on products that are still in progress.

The lockdown has also allowed them to enjoy their home, restructure their website, and experiment with new collaborations. Working apart, their team of five communicates through video calls every day – they say ‘it's manageable, but it's just not the same as working all together around the same table, which is something we find really important in the studio.’

Over in Madrid, designers and architects Imanol Calderón Elósegui and Marta Alonso Yebra, of Mayice Studio, are also taking the long view. The husband-and-wife duo are working on a commission with the Suzhou Museum in China, giving the illuminated blown glass and colourful embroidery prototypes all the attention they need. They are doing drawings, maquettes, and light tests, all from their home studio, and using delivery services to exchange models with artisans where necessary: ‘Video calls are not always enough. They must appreciate the work through their five senses.’

While progress has slowed, Mayice Studio have come to appreciate the space to review decisions and extend their creative process. Product launches that had been scheduled for this year’s Salone del Mobile – namely, a lamp collection with LZF, and outdoor pieces for Gandia Blasco with textiles by Kvadrat Febrik – are now being released online in summer.

Barcelona-based Eugeni Quitllet has often called himself a ‘disoñador’ - a play on designer (diseñador) and dreamer (soñador). He believes we are witnessing the end of an era. Used to waking up and seeing his friends, colleagues, and assistants working together to design a better world, he now feels surrounded by poetic emptiness, prompting him to ponder ‘TIME, thought, uncertainty, optimism, FUTURE, now’.

He sees lockdown as hibernation; we are in a standstill but nature continues its course – birds keep singing, bees keep working, and flowers flourishing even better without us.

It’s as if Eugeni envisioned this pandemic years ago when he designed GalaXsea: a speculative ‘solar sailboat, mid-way from the Earth and the Stars, where a genius platform from where a new vision of the future can begin’. GalaXsea is intended to gather thinkers, scientists, designers, musicians and other creative talents, to awaken their senses and foster ambitious visions for the future.

The current situation has given new relevance to Quittlet’s utopian experiment, so much that the designer has created a ‘space shelter’ at home for contemplation and retreat. ‘My parents are sons of the Second World War, and I am son of the New Age,’ he muses. ‘We will be reawaken from this strange interruption with more love and perhaps flowers in our long hair.’

A poem from Eugeni Quitllet

ART, music, architecture,
POETRY... meditation, infusions, healthy diet... vitamins.
TIME, thought... uncertainty... Optimism, FUTURE, now...
NATURE, oneself, FEAR... restlessness, LOVE, introspection, ORIGIN, end...
CHILDHOOD, old age...
Me, YOU, them, us... LIFE, death, TODAY, tomorrow...
All these thoughts go through my mind in an instant.
An instant of eternity, of awareness... of CONFINEMENT

INFORMATION

@jaimehayon, hayonstudio.com
@mut_design, mutdesign.com
@mayicestudio, mayicestudio.com
@eugeniquitllet, eugeniquitllet.com; galaxseaproject.com

Click to watch designer Jaime Hayon discuss his new fairground carousel, for Swarovski. Videography: Tom Andrews. Courtesy of Swarovski

While carousels come in many shapes and guises, they have rarely strayed from the Victorian aesthetic that harks back to the heyday of the travelling fairground. A new carousel, unveiled in Wattens, Austria today by crystal manufacturer Swarovski, is an exuberant exception.

Created by Spanish artist-designer Jaime Hayon, the carousel is perched in the south-west corner of Swarovski Kristallwelten – the sculpture garden cum visitors centre nestled among the Tyrolean Alps, near the brand’s head office. Bucking the custom of colourful fairground rides, Hayon has rendered his design in black and white with accents of gold, all in contrast to the verdant surroundings. For Carla Rumler, cultural director of Swarovski and commissioner of the carousel, the choice of palette came as a surprise. ‘I thought it was irritating before I saw the renderings,’ she recalls. ‘But it turned out to be the most elegant thing.’

Walking up the winding path to the carousel, one first notices the jug-eared, cartoonish bust at the top, appearing to wear the carousel’s tented top as an enormous skirt. Underneath, the usual wooden horses have been replaced with fantastic monochrome seats. ‘For me, a carousel can be seen a moving museum,’ explains Hayon. ‘There are sculptures moving around, which can be seen as art pieces. So I started by drawing freely and creating creatures from my imagination.’

One eventual creature appears to be a cross between a balloon animal and a rubber duck, a smaller piece looks like a bipedal narwhal wearing Japanese clogs. For the younger riders, there’s a gentling rocking carriage that can be described as a cross between a snail and a dog, while the requisite spinning teacup has been adorned with playful clown faces.

More whimsical faces – formed of geometric shapes and drawing inspiration from African masks – can be seen on the awnings and fencing. They alternate between expressions of excitement, joy and wonder, mirroring the common reactions of visitors as they discover the attraction. Even the ride attendant’s cabin is topped with a winking character that balances a sausage-like form on its head.

While the project brief did not require Hayon to use Swarovski crystal, there are 15 million pieces deftly integrated into the design, including the wall panels that wrap around the central pole (punctuated with geometric mirrors), the faces on the awnings, and the carousel’s ceiling, which is inlaid with playful drawings in typical Hayon-esque fashion. Sparkling under the summer sun, they draw further attention to the already eye-catching forms.

There are ample view points to admire the carousel, including an observation deck a stone’s throw away, but the best way to experience it is by climbing aboard. Here, a lively soundtrack plays in the background, its classical melody offset by a contemporary bassline. One is torn between caressing, then straddling the fibreglass creatures; admiring the optical illusions created by striped elements in motion; and taking in the glorious views, including the glass-faceted tower by Snøhetta nearby (which serves as Kristallwelten’s café) and the more traditional Alpine architecture and majestic hills in the distance; all while basking in fairytale-like wonder.

Hayon is keen to defy the stereotype that the carousel is a child’s ride. ‘This is an art piece, and art should be for all audiences. I think that adults need to dream and to dare, like children do. When Swarovski asked me to make this carousel, I thought it would be the perfect project. Because even though it can be linked to children, it’s been the perfect opportunity to break the rules.’

INFORMATION

swarovski.com; hayonstudio.com

It’s that time of year again when quartz specialist Caesarstone pushes the boundaries of their dynamic wares by collaborating with a design big-hitter. Recall last year’s folkloric playground by Jaime Hayon, or 2016’s elemental kitchens by Tom Dixon, each project is first unveiled at Interior Design Show in Toronto, and then evolves throughout the year.

This year’s offering is the brainchild of multi-disciplinary design renegade Snarkitecture. It centres on any self-respecting domestic dreamer’s contemporary kitchen must-have – the island – a space which has become ‘the social hub of the house,’ says Alex Mustonen, Snarkitecture’s partner and co-founder. It’s an idea that aligns with his goal of ‘creating environments and experiences that are designed to be inclusive.’

Using Caesarstone’s surfaces as a jumping off point, Snarkitecture have created four, highly conceptual takes on kitchen islands. Each have their own identities, yet communicate with the same design language, categorised by sinuous, stratified layers that emulate natural topography.

Titled ‘Ice Island’, ‘Water Island’, ‘Steam Island’ and ‘Play Island’, the four-fold installation reflects the kitchen island’s multi-function; a place of preparation, performance, and occasional kitchen-sink drama. Take ‘Steam Island’, for instance, which comprises 28, finely rendered layers of Caesarstone White Attica quartz. Through the layers, an atmospheric emission of water vapour emits from the surface – evoking both earth-shattering volcanic eruptions, and (a little closer to home) the gentle over-boiling of a pan.

More objet d'art than à la carte, the islands are intended to convey the brilliance of Caesarstone surfaces. ‘As architects, we tend to be very material-oriented,’ says Ben Porto, partner at Snarkitecture. ‘This collaboration gives us the opportunity to engage and interact with the Caesarstone material, something we would like to pass on to visitors of the installation, demonstrating its versatility and quality.’

The IDS instalment is just the appetiser for this ongoing island project – look out for the large scale installation during Salone del Mobile in April.

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the Caesarstone website and the Snarkitecture website

This year saw Jasper Morrison launch the new menswear label Jijibaba, a tatami-inspired sandal for Camper and his first-ever eyewear collection for Japanese brand Jins. ‘I spent my life thinking of things to sit on, so it’s good to turn my attention onto things to wear,’ he says. Meanwhile our 2017 Designer of the Year continued to bring his delightfully minimal aesthetic to furniture designs for Emeco and Maruni, as well as a pen range for Lamy. He also trained his curatorial eye on a book of photographs of day-to-day objects from Portugal, titled The Hard Life.

Surveying our Judges’ Awards shortlist, Morrison was particularly drawn to Michael Anastassiades’ coffee mill, ‘I admire the boldness of this design. The offset of the cylinder, which serves as a handle, is done with perfect proportions between the two volumes.’

Elsewhere, Morrison’s geographically diverse selection of winners seemed to reflect his own periapetic nature. Stockholm’s Tak won his vote for Best New Restaurant due to ‘the contrast of the rather delicate interior, playing off against the brutalist structures which contain it’, he explains. ‘It also helped that they selected my Lightwood chair!’ For Best New Public Building, he chose Marrakech’s YSL Museum, praising its interweaving of textured brickwork and lighter, plainer materials. ‘It manages the needs of a modern museum, while appearing new and fresh and carrying the codes of Islamic architecture.’ 

And while it’s been a long time since Morrison visited Mexico City – winner of the Best City category – his memories of it remain strong. ‘The large and crowded cafés, the quieter residential areas with their exotic architectures, Frida Kahlo’s studio and [Luis] Barragán’s houses,’ he reminiscences. ‘I imagine there’s been a lot of change, but I’m also sure it’s kept its spirit.’

A version of this article originally appeared in the February 2018 issue of Wallpaper* (W*227)

INFORMATION

For more information, visit Jasper Morrison’s website

‘Kite’ armchair, from €1,733, by GamFratesi, for Porro. ‘Formakami’ lamps, from £133, by Jaime Hayon, for &Tradition. ‘Woodlines’ rug, from £652, by Naja Utzon Popov, for Carl Hansen & Søn. ‘Offset’ coffee table, £1,485; stool/side table, £308, both by Philippe Malouin, for Resident. ‘Pin’ bowls, from $27, by Jonas Wagell, for From the Bay. ‘Chrysalis Cocoon’ floor lamp, from £2,099, by Marcel Wanders, for Flos. ‘Bonsai’ sofa, from €3,676, by Claesson Koivisto Rune, for Arflex. ‘Fondale’ vase, £284, by Office for Product Design, for Rosenthal. ‘Jeu de Signes’ fabric panels, part of the Voyage à Kyõto-Shi collection, £161 per m, by Misia

‘Alfred’ table, price on request, by David Dolcini, for Porada. ‘Jens’ chairs, from £1,173 each, by Antonio Citterio, for B&B Italia. Pinch pot, £40, by Constantinos Hoursoglou, for Shibui. ‘Piippu’ pot with filter holder, €165, by Kaksikko, for Skagerak. ‘Ceramics’ pot, SEK3,320 (€340), by Carina Seth Andersson, for Fogia. ‘Taranto’ rug, part of the Fresco & Nimbus collection, £1,367 per sq m, by Luke Irwin. ‘Bankside’ sofa, from £1,888, by Jasper Morrison, for B&B Italia. ‘T’ lamp, £2,121, by Marcel Wanders, for Moooi. ‘Salix’ fabric, £135 per m, by Sahco

‘Sign Filo’ chair, €1,409, by Piergiorgio Cazzaniga, for MDF Italia. ‘Kanji’ lamps, from £430, by Denis Guidone, for Fontana Arte. ‘Blau’ low table, from €1,050, by Fran Silvestre, for Gandia Blasco. ‘Yixing’ ceramics (scattered throughout), from £40, by Christopher Jenner. ‘Ren’ magazine rack, £1,404; side table, £1,536, both by Neri & Hu, for Poltrona Frau. ‘Cato Blues’ rug, part of the Mosaic collection, from £15,783, by Luke Irwin. ‘Torii-S’ stool, £179, by Satoshi Seto, for Karimoku New Standard. ‘20.Venti’ desk, from €4,494, by 967Arch, for MDF Italia. ‘Hven’ armchair, DKK3,995 (€537), by Anton Björsing, for Skagerak. ‘Wander’ light, $250, by Jonas Wagell, for From the Bay. ‘Pensée Masaï’ fabric, part of the Rêve de Burchell collection, £147 per m, by Misia

‘SW’ sofa, from £2,597, by OeO, for Stellar Works. ‘Rift’ mirror, from €4,440, by Giancarlo Bosio and Centro Ricerche, for Giorgetti. ‘Grey Sari Silk’ rugs, part of the Sari Silk collection, price on request, by Luke Irwin. ‘Jens’ chair, from £1,173, by Antonio Citterio, for B&B Italia. ‘Georg’ stool, £239, by Chris Liljenberg Halstrøm, for Skagerak. Bureau, £3,080, by Patricio de Arkaia, for Arkaia. ‘Gaia’ pendant, €798, by Emiliana Martinelli, for Martinelli Luce. ‘Noah’ bed, from €3,785, by Philippe Allaeys, for E15. ‘Kosi Bank’ bench, €1,336, by Moritz von Schmeling, for Zeitraum. ‘Night Owl’ table lamp, £122, by Nicholai Wiig Hansen, for Republic of Fritz Hansen

‘Axy’ table, from €2,545, by Claudio Bellini, for MDF Italia. ‘Dash Dot’ desk set, $425, by Quentin de Coster, for Othr. ‘AP’ stool, £290, by Shin Azumi, for Lapalma. ‘Teorema’ stackable unit, £883, by Ron Gilad, for Molteni & C. ‘Splendido 1000’ rug, price on request, by Matteo Thun, for Object Carpet. ‘Float’ stool, €550, by Nendo, for Moroso. ‘Cutter’ bench, £639, by Niels Hvass, for Skagerak. ‘Tokyo’ chaise longue, from €4,750, by Charlotte Perriand, for Cassina. ‘Cupolone’ pendant, £389, by Elio Martinelli, for Martinelli Luce

Illustrator: Tishk Barzanji. Interiors: Amy Heffernan. As originally featured in the January 2018 issue of Wallpaper* (W*226)

Unravelling the ever-fraying seam between the worlds of fashion and industrial design, Jijibaba is the new ‘not-fashion’ menswear label from furniture designers Jaime Hayon and Jasper Morrison. To mark its mixed-medium identity, the collection has launched two times over, in different contexts – during London Fashion Week at Dover Street Market and again as part of the London Design Festival exhibition Design Frontiers at Somerset House.

‘I don’t really think of Jijibaba as fashion,’ says Morrison, listing the practical differences that set the brand apart from traditional fashion labels. Chiefly, rather than launching with seasonal collections, there will be one, evolving range of items. The opening gambit, aptly called ‘Items 1 - 38’, includes 19 items created by each designer. As time goes on, that number will rise as Jijibaba takes on new design collaborators. There’s also a lightheartedness to the range, emphasised by the name (which loosely means ‘grandmother/grandfather’ in Japanese, chosen purely for its ‘silliness’, says Morrison).

The salon-style presentation at Somerset House strengthens the label’s design orientation. Hung on a newly-designed modular rack designed by Hayon, the items are seen amid an array of the duo’s pre-exiting furniture, including Morrison’s 2016 range for Vitra, and Hayon’s ongoing collection of designs for Fritz Hansen. Visitors are invited to lounge, peruse and enjoy in what Morrison refers to as ‘the best room in the house’.

Morrison had his eye on Somerset House’s most impressive hall, complete with a sweeping, white archway, since visiting two years ago. He booked in the space even before he had a project to fill it. ‘We weren’t even sure if we would get the clothes made in time,’ he explains. But with the help of their partner, Phaidon’s Richard Schlagman, ‘who’s very much on the business side of things’, the ambitious project came together in a busy 18 months.

Both Morrison and Hayon have carried their existing aesthetics and design sensibilities into the new project. Hayon, no stranger to discipline-hopping, makes things ‘for people, to be used by people’ – an ideology folded into his highly wearable, functional pieces. Also featuring his signature sense of humour, Hayon’s designs feature snappy colours, patterned with smiling faces. Morrison, on the other hand, stays true to his steadfast ethos of ‘invisible design’, with a rich yet understated palette of burgundies, navies and creams. Though imagined separately, both offerings exude a quiet confidence and quality that makes them read as one, cohesive collection.

Fans of Morrison’s furniture needn’t fret – his feet remain firmly planted in that camp. ‘I have no ambition to become a fashion designer,’ he says, ‘though I have found it really interesting to deal with soft stuff instead of the usual wood, metal and plastic. I spend most of my life thinking of things to sit on so it’s good to turn my attention onto things to wear.’

Rather than thinking of Jijibaba as a new frontier, Morrison prefers to see it as a middle ground. ‘I think most people in the design world will see Jijibaba as a big jump across a wall, probably fashion people will too,’ says Morrison. ‘But it isn’t really – it’s something in-between.’

INFORMATION

Available exclusively from Dover Street Market. For more information, visit the Jijibaba website

With his investment and creative direction of the spruced up Mar de Avellanas, Jaime Hayon has come full circle. Having worked in his family’s Madrid restaurant as a waiter when he was younger and, by all accounts, completely ambivalent about the experience, he swore he would never again be involved in the business. But when Claudia Peris, his good friend and owner of the Valencia favourite approached him to be involved in its expansion, he says he didn’t hesitate.

The result is a curious mix of a homey Spanish eatery in the historic Plaza del Patriarca that’s anchored by simple Danish furniture and hand-made tiles with the sudden, unexpected appearance of angular lines, modular cut outs, brass trims and curved swathes of mirrors – in other words, evidence of Hayon’s distinctive design DNA.

‘It reminds me of 1920s Berlin and Vienna, but set in the Mediterranean,’ says the Spanish designer who has lived in Valencia since he upped stakes from his London base seven years ago. ‘This is a space I’ve always wanted: elegant, cosy and affordable. Hopefully, it’s also a space that will stand the test of time.’

Even executive chef Jose Vicente Exposito’s menu has been expanded – casual tapas, salads, paella and cocktails in a green-hued bistro called Inventario; and a more sophisticated spread of fish and seasonal vegetables in the red-tinged Mar d’Avellanes room.

ADDRESS

Plaza Colegio del Patriarca
6-bajo

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Salone del Mobile is a circus and Jaime Hayon would like you to roll up, roll up to Palazzo Serbelloni, where his glossy black merry-go-round for Caesarstone will be spinning like a life-sized kaleidoscope inside a pavilion of stained glass and quartz. Anyone with the stomach for it is welcome to hop aboard.

‘Stone Age Folk’ is the latest in a series of spectacles produced by Caesarstone, the maker of high-grade engineered quartz and a perennial design-week ringleader. Hayon, the Valencia-based designer beloved for his fantastical ceramics and sinuous furniture, proved a natural collaborator for the brand.

At furniture fairs like Milan, the ‘fair’ element is often glaringly absent. Yet Palazzo Serbelloni – a setting for lavish parties long before Napoleon and Josephine squatted there in the late 18th century – aims to please. The centrepiece of Hayon’s multi-room show, the carousel sits in the palazzo’s ballroom surrounded by Corinthian pillars, gilt mirrors and elaborate cornicing. Graphic geometric panels set into the steel-frame walls have Hayon’s typical exuberance, but with a vivid exoticism reminiscent of ancient carvings and tribal ornamentation. This flourish stems from Hayon’s obsession with anthropological artefacts. In this case, his study of Hungarian costumes, Japanese legends and his own Spanish heritage coloured his thinking.

‘I always get inspiration by looking at the spirit of different cultures,’ he says. As someone who approaches design with almost wide-eyed innocence, he found a common language with the subject matter and distilled it down to a simple pattern of motifs. ‘There’s something very primitive about folklore,’ he adds. ‘If you look at Bavarian dresses or Dutch embroidery, [the look] is always very basic – almost as if it was done for kids.’

For Hayon, the launch of the carousel is the culmination of a two-year investigation into themes of flora, fauna and folklore in ancient civilisations. In 2015, Caesarstone provided funding for a commission from the Design Museum Holon in Israel, for which Hayon designed a giant mirror in the shape of a tribal mask. Experimenting with traditional and contemporary marquetry, he gave the mask a monkey-like quality with wide eyes, a jagged mouth and lolling tongue, alternating mirror inlay with engineered quartz.

‘What we liked was the way he approached Caesarstone [as a material] and brought to life the combination of colours in a unique way,’ says Eli Feiglin, vice president of marketing at Caesarstone, who worked with Hayon on the project. ‘We also liked his idea of combining it with other materials.’ ‘Face Mirror’ is now in the permanent collection at Holon. With Toronto’s 2017 Interior Design Show (IDS) on the horizon, Caesarstone went on to commission Hayon to create an entire range of furnishings and wall panels. This time, Hayon delivered the same marquetry, but the pinched noses and bands of ‘war paint’ signified a more playful interpretation of cultural motifs. The seven pieces that debuted in January at IDS – including a ‘face cabinet’ and ‘bird table’ – helped push the Caesarstone product into an area of home furnishings previously dominated by marble and granite (the quartz composite, bound by polymer resin, is actually stronger and more flexible than either).

Every second year, the Caesarstone crew hits Milan with a new kitchen design by a veteran such as Tom Dixon or an up-and-comer such as the duo Raw-Edges. But in alternate years, they give designers a free pass to play with their material. This is one of those years and is what Caesarstone’s new CEO, Raanan Zilberman, hopes to see more of in the fair programme in future. ‘We already see that materials are inspiring and stimulating artists, architects and designers to create in domains that are far beyond the classical applications,’ he says. ‘We look forward to seeing designers from all over the world break the traditional relationship with our materials and enter areas that we have never tried before – in particular in domestic usage for furniture and accessories.’

Using ‘Face Mirror’ and the subsequent furniture collection as thematic bookends, Feiglin asked Hayon to ‘freestyle’ for Salone. The idea, he says, was to juxtapose the Caesarstone with even more complex materials and to frame the composite stone as one would a precious jewel. ‘We wanted to look at it as a gem, highlighting the accuracy with which you cut it and set it,’ says Feiglin.

Not only was Hayon operating outside the kitchen context, he was operating outside his own. ‘To be honest, I was never really interested in this material before,’ he says. Hayon runs through the variety of media he’s been blessed to work with. Oak for Fritz Hansen. Crystal for Baccarat. Carrara marble for Galerie Kreo. Twenty-four carat gold for Bosa. ‘I’ve always promoted materials that go into museums, in which there’s a sense of nature and a sort of proof with time,’ he says. ‘I’m passionate about working with simple, high-end materials, things that were used in Rome.’ Caesarstone wasn’t on his radar, but he came around. ‘At the end of the day, I’m contributing to the history of a certain material, whether it’s crystal or porcelain. Lately I’ve been exploring leather, copper and marble,’ he says. ‘What I’ve realised is that this is a sort of 21st-century marble.’

Hayon set a goal to take Caesarstone out of its functional niche and apply it in an artier milieu. He asked, ‘What would the decorative artists of the Villa Borghese in Rome have done if they’d had Caesarstone instead of marble for their marquetry?’ Probably used a high-definition laser-cutting machine, he concluded.

Beginning with an extensive palette of colours and textures, he reined himself in, opting for the most ‘banal’ slabs in tones of sand and grey. Using the most popular neutrals in the collection would create subtle contrasts and ‘prove you can do something spectacular, graphic and artistic with the simplest of all elements’. Introducing panes of coloured glass would satisfy Feiglin’s wish to pair unlikely surfaces together.

And what a lot of surface it is. Even the Villa Borghese has never seen so much marquetry as Hayon has installed in the ballroom (ten tonnes of it). ‘Making this happen, exactly how we wanted it, was hard core,’ he says. And that’s the point. In scaling up gradually from the ‘Face Mirror’ to the ‘Face Cabinet’ to this pavilion, he has built an argument for using the stone in an architectural way.

The carousel is a means of experiencing the stone at a grand scale, brushing against the lustrous finish, contemplating it at ceiling height. ‘Instead of being just a floor in your bathroom, it brings you into another dimension,’ says Hayon. ‘This is what I want to show people – how they can get into a totally new world by applying the material.

As originally featured in the May 2017 issue of Wallpaper* (W*218)

INFORMATION

‘Stone Age Folk’ ran from 4–8 April. For more information, visit Jamie Hayon’s website and the Caesarstone website

ADDRESS

Palazzo Serbelloni
Corso Venezia 16
Milan

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The possibility inherent in Caesarstone’s magnificent wares appears to be endless. Over a number of years, the quartz titan has fashioned swings, vases, a stone garden and elemental kitchens (created with Tom Dixon) as part of its yearly series of design collaborations. There is always great anticipation surrounding the unveiling of which coveted creative will helm the annual project, and the how they will transform these functional surfaces into architecture, art and more.

This year it’s the turn of Jaime Hayon. The Spanish designer revealed a collection of seven fantastical furniture pieces, imbued with his trademark whimsical style, in an installation titled ‘Stone Age Folk’ at IDS Toronto last week.

Sketch of Hayon's initial ideas for the range.

Each piece embodies a different character in Hayon’s kingdom. Taking cues from the folklore of various cultures, the set includes tables cut out in the shape of birds, sat alongside cabinets and mirrors reminiscent of the primitive mask mirror he created for the brand back in 2015.

Described by Hayon as a ‘combination of ideas, from folklore to fauna to colour to material to stone to furniture’, the ambitious collection's abstract features and patterns are intricate adaptations of Caesarstone’s fine marquetry, yet again pushed to its creative limits.

And this is just the beginning. Hayon, like Caesarstone's past design collaborators, will be upping his game for Salone del Mobile, with a large-scale installation of the pieces at the enchanting Palazzo Serbelloni. Watch this space.

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the Caesarstone website, Interior Design Show website and Hayon Studio website

Giorgio Armani created this pyramid-shaded lamp for his own design studio in 1982. When he launched his interiors arm Armani/Casa in 2000, the design became an integral part of his home collection and got its ‘Logo’ lamp moniker.

To celebrate the autumn opening of the new Armani/Casa store in Milan, at the former De Padova HQ on Corso Venezia, the ‘Logo’ lamp has been photographed across the globe by Wallpaper* contributor Beppe Brancato in the homes or offices of leading figures in the design world. Among them 
are Vincenzo de Cotiis, John Pawson, Jaime Hayon, Vincent Darré, Roksanda Ilincic and Tadao Ando – 
not forgetting Wallpaper’s own Nick Vinson.

The lamp is shown immediately above in the Osaka office of Pritzker Prize-winning architect Ando, who completed the Armani/Teatro in Milan in 2001, on a one-off table of his own design. On the 
wall is a model of Ando’s 1995 competition entry for the Tate Modern extension, while on the desk is a model of his 2011 Casa Monterrey, Mexico.

As originally featured in the September 2016 issue of Wallpaper* (W*210)

INFORMATION

A special edition of the lamp will be available from the new store. For more information, visit the Armani/Casa website

ADDRESS

Armani/Casa
Corso Venezia 14
Milan

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Yet another design brand has taken over territory in London’s design friendly Clerkenwell. This time, shipping in from Spain is BD Barcelona. Opening its first UK showroom during Clerkenwell Design Week, the brand brings an artistic aesthetic to a gallery setting on Berry Street.

The space is stocked with avant-garde and occasionally eccentric pieces from a long list of collaborations with Ross Lovegrove, Doshi Levien and Neri & Hu. All follow BD Barcelona’s brand credo ’Design meets art’. Among the many pieces on view are designs fresh from Salone del Mobile, such as Swedish duo Färg Blanche’s patterned and sewed wooden armchair, and the Campana Brothers’s aquarium-inspired ‘Aquário’ cabinet.

The opening coincides with the launch of a Salvador Dalí-inspired chair titled ‘Invisible Personage’, which takes centre stage in the space. Drawing on Dalí’s eerie 1935–36 work Singularities, Oscar Tusquets Blanca, an architect and BD Barcelona’s co-founder, designed the chair with the image’s texture in mind, realised in a powder pink hue. The brand began showing Dalí’s works back in 1972 with his abstract lighting; and it has since continued to reproduce his experimental designs, many of which – like the conceptual brass ‘Leda’ armchairs – are on display in the new space.

The rest of BD Barcelona’s works maintain a similar surrealist synergy – as seen in Jaime Hayon’s whimsical ‘King Kong’ mirrors, suspended above Cristian Zuzunaga’s vibrant pixilated sideboard from 2015, ‘Dreams’. The showroom interiors have been given a simple monochrome palette, allowing the fanciful pieces to express themselves.

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the BD Barcelona website

What made you give watch design a go?
I really like classic watch designs but I had never found something that said: 'Yes, this is exactly that'. There was nothing with a sense of humour, so I started to think about a watch design. I collaborated with Ian Lowe and Angela Adams and we set up the watch brand Orolog in 2013.

And the technological challenge?
If you think about the functionality of something you will never design anything. The size – and the fact that you can draw it then print it like a paper watch you had as a kid, and put it on your wrist right away, makes the process simpler than furniture or sculpture design.

Where did the cheeky monkey on the dial of the Miko come from?
When you think about a specific character it presents the design solution. The three sub dials in the chrono movement of the ‘Miko’ – monkey – watch had a story – I saw the monkey image in them. The story makes decisions. You might not know the monkey is there at first. People tend not to see it straight away, but then when you catch a glimpse of it you get a surprise.

Tell us about the new addition to your horological menagerie?
The new Gaviota design, which will launch in autumn, features a seagull – the Spanish word is ‘gaviota’. It’s like a sculpture because I played with volume by multi-layering using just engraving, so the bird appears in relief on the dial.

What are the Hayon design codes in Orolog watches?
I wanted to create a watch out of all the things I like so that it looks like me and something I would do. I liked the idea of creating a history with texture and design and used French style guilloche décor, which worked well for the monkey hair, which is linear.

If Orolog created a digital watch what form would it take?
I don’t think the future is an app – it’s what we do with a watch itself. You can be innovative with analogue solutions, such as looking at it from a more historical perspective: the gentleman looking at his pocket watch is similar to someone taking his phone out of his pocket and checking the time, for instance. Techology is there to be used. How are we going to use it? We don’t know. Ultimately, it will always be about what we like to wear ourselves.

As originally featured in the May 2016 issue of Wallpaper* Time Supplement (W*206)

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the Orolog website or Jaime Hayon website

‘Let there be light’ seemed to be the mission statement radiating from Galerie Kreo's tastefully illuminated booth at San Francisco's FOG Design+Art Fair. ‘In all my booths, there is a lot of lights because that is my passion,’ says Didier Krzentowski, who founded the gallery with his wife Clémence, and also co-authored a history of lights with her. For Krzentowski, there is no greater talent than Gino Sarfatti – the late Italian maestro who was the subject of a 2012 retrospective at La Triennale Design Museum in Milan.

Dressed in a sharp blue suit and navy slippers monogrammed with ON and OFF, Krzentowski picked up a yellow-shaded, bronze-based floor lamp, adjusted it with a simple twist of his hand before moving towards his favourite: a two-bulb blue shaded Scarfatti sconce. ‘He was thinking about lighting different positions however you wanted,’ he says. ‘It's easy to do something complicated, but something so simple, it's very difficult.’

Around and under lamps, illuminated mirrors and chandeliers from Scarfatti, Studio Wieki Somers and the Bouroullec brothers, Kreo shed some light on their decor. Against one wall leaned a carbon fibre ladder by Marc Newson beside Doshi Levien's multi-colored 'Squarable Lune' mirror. Across the booth, Jaime Hayon's Venetian-influenced ‘Monkey’ mirror held court between Alessandro Mendini's reflective white gold 'Poltrona' chair and a hollowed console made from Maquina black marble by Pierre Charpin. ‘It's genius because it's concave inside,’ says Krzentowski pointing out the engineering that allowed for the weighty material to be so light. 

However, the centre of attention in the booth seemed to be focused on the glass-topped 'Champions' table from Konstantin Grcic. Inspired by racing sports, its red, green and yellow aluminium base appeared to invoke a road bicycle or cigarette boat, enhanced via the word ‘Jetdog’ emblazoned down the middle by master lacquerer Walter Maurer. 

‘It doesn't mean anything,’ says Krzentowski with a laugh. ‘But "Jetdog" gives you the feeling of speed.’

INFORMATION
For more information, visit Fod Design+Art’s website or Galerie Kreo’s website

When the Ron Arad-designed Design Museum Holon opened in 2010, it declared Holon to be a new centre for design in the Middle East. Five years and twenty two exhibitions later and things are going well. 

To mark its fifth anniversary, the museum will play host to a solo show of work by Spanish designer Jaime Hayon called 'Funtastico'. Having made its debut at the Groninger Museum in 2013, Funtastico encompasses ten years-worth of product, furniture and interior design pieces by the prolific designer, including pieces for clients such as b.d. barcelona, Cassina, Fritz Hansen, Magis, Swarovski, Bisazza and Lladró  to name just a few.

For the exhibition's Holon showing, Hayon has made an exclusive addition to the showcase in the form of a large scale, one-of-a-kind wall hanging mirror. Referencing giant primitive masks, the mirror will be constructed of quartz stone marquetry provided by solid-surface material manufacturer Caesarstone, who have donated the piece to the museum's permanent collection.

'I see masks as a storyteller, or a mirror if you will, of history,' explains Hayon. 'Every civilization, from the ancient peoples of the Middle East to the Aztecs in the Americas, has utilised masks, and each mask tells a story. I became keen to create a mask representing characters from my own cosmos, one which combines fantasy, a certain playfulness, together with craft and quality. I decided to use mirror together with stone to create different textures and feelings, as if the mask were an old mosaic. Some parts have stone, while other parts show a reflection onto ourselves.'

Other highlights include The Tournament – a colossal chess set handcrafted and handpainted by Hayon - and the Green Chicken - a bright green rocking horse in the shape of a hen.

Having made its debut at the Groninger Museum in 2013, Funtastico encompasses ten years-worth of product, furniture and interior design pieces by the prolific designer. 

For the exhibition’s Holon showing, Hayon has made an exclusive addition to the showcase in the form of a large scale, one-of-a-kind, face mask-inspired wall hanging mirror made of quartz stone marquetry.

’I became keen to create a mask representing characters from my own cosmos, one which combines fantasy, a certain playfulness, together with craft and quality,’ explains Hayon. ’I decided to use mirror together with stone to create different textures and feelings, as if the mask were an old mosaic. Some parts have stone, while other parts show a reflection onto ourselves.’ 

...and the Green Chicken - a bright green rocking horse in the shape of a hen that was originally made for the Shanghai show ‘Contrasts and Contradictions: Chapter 1’ (2006) - an exhibition that explored the design vs. art dispute of creativity being limited by functionality. 

INFORMATION

Jaime Hayon’s Funtastico is at Design Museum Holon, Israel from 28 November 2015 - 26 March 2016

ADDRESS

Design Museum Holon
Pinkhas Eilon St 8
Holon, 5845400
Israel

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Tempting as it may be to describe Jaime Hayon's new collection for Galerie Kreo, 'Game On', as sport chic, it would trivialise the materiality of his pieces to mere trend-speak. But this is not to suggest the prolific designer artist wants his bobsleigh daybed or hanging trapeze lights treated with gravitas. Au contraire. The pieces, he insists, are unapologetically playful - in keeping with both his personality and the theme.

Most people would never look at a table tennis paddle and envision a mirror, or see the potential of a medal podium as a cabinet. But cleverness and craft are to Hayon what serving and speed are to Roger Federer (for what it's worth, the designer says he dabbled in tennis as a kid). A side table in solid white marble, honed with a pattern of golf ball dimples, veers far from kitsch. In some cases, the source material is apparent but downplayed, as with a frosted glass lampshade shaped like a badminton birdie. (The three base options marked with brass lines, evoking football, basketball or volleyball courts or pitches) The 'Ping Pong' table in oak wood on a set of castors might come closest to its original function - except for its refined finish. But who knows; future owners (it was produced as an edition of six with two artist's proofs) might be inclined to serve dinner first and backspin later.

Hayon revealed that one buyer of a 'Podium' cabinet (an edition of eight with two artist's proofs) joked she will arrange the objects in each block according to preference. And indeed, anytime she pushes one of the beveled polyurethane doors, its numbered outline will act as a reminder.

The idea for 'Game On', Hayon's first collaboration with Galerie Kreo, began about four years ago, but took shape in earnest once the London Olympics had ended. At first, the designer was unsure whether people were feeling sport fatigue. But as he developed the prototypes - restricting the collection to noble, classic materials such as marble, porcelain, wood and steel - he realised they transcended mere novelty. As the sum of its parts, the collection reinforces that one must first respect the rules before breaking them. 'When you play with the idea of "serious fun", it's great, but there has to be quality,' explained Hayon, referring to the label recently bestowed upon him by Groninger Museum curator Suean van der Zijpp.

Hayon, included in the Wallpaper* 100 last year, has been fielding a wide range of projects over the past year, from chair designs for Magis and Fritz Hansen, to Cassina tasking him with an exceptional project linked to the famous Paulownia tree on Le Corbusier's Villa Le Lac property. His latest watch design for Orolog, an edition of 50, will also be available at Galerie Kreo. 'Everything I do is an exercise,' he said, stretching the theme. 'The most beautiful thing you can do in your career is to challenge yourself more and more. That way, you're never boring.'

For the Paris installation, which was unveiled yesterday (the London debut takes place 3 June), Hayon animated the walls and floors with colorful tape, applying wide creative licence to court and field demarcations. Shortly prior to the opening, he illustrated the street-facing windows. 'Everyone was a little bit scared, but they don't know me fully,' Hayon said, a big smile revealing just how much he enjoys throwing a curveball. Well-played, Jaime.

ADDRESS

Galerie Kreo
31 Rue Dauphine
75006 Paris

14A Hay Hill
W1J 8NZ London, UK

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The link between men's fashion and timepieces is becoming stronger thanks to a flux of younger watch brands who are making their mark on the London Collections: Men with their latest collections.

Swatch, overall partner of the event, made its intentions clear last year when it announced a three-year partnership with the British Fashion Council. This year, the brand unveiled its latest collection, Gran Turismo, at Victoria House in Bloomsbury Square. The homage to the golden age of racing heroes remains faithful to the fun, quirky spirit the brand is known for, twisting a classic racing aesthetic with metallic accents, brake-inspired dials and vivid colours.

Young brand Orolog also used the occasion to showcase its new pieces. It's led by acclaimed designer Jaime Hayon, whose admirably diverse clients include Baccarat, Fritz Hansen and Bernhardt Design. ‘LC:M is important to us as it has rapidly established itself as a key platform for emerging trends,’ says Orolog cofounder Ian Lowe. ‘Hayon’s creative activity perfectly reflects the increasing crossover which is happening across these fields.’ The latest collection elegantly combines materials and colours in unexpected ways - steel case chronographs come with steel hands, dials and sub-dials in differing shades of blue, while combinations of grey with blue and green dials are set off by matt black cases.

For Uniform Wares, it was the parallels between LC:M and its own brand that appealed. Cofounder and creative director Patrick Bek says: ‘London is the home of progressive menswear and the show is the perfect place to exhibit our progressive collection.’ The brand will be showing the C-Line and M-Line collections, both elegant families of watches that celebrate sharp angles, perfect symmetry and carefully considered proportions. For Bek, simplicity is key and he advises those considering their first watch purchase to: ‘Keep it classic. A stainless steel case with polished accents will never look out of place.’ Most importantly? Relax and have fun. ‘Once your first watch is out of the way, it's a lot easier to experiment with style.’

Considering it was once labelled the world’s first design hotel, it is a tragic loss that apart from the exterior, not much remains of the iconic Copenhagen property created by Danish architect Arne Jacobsenin 1960.

Commissioned by commercial air company Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) as an international gateway to Denmark, Sweden and Norway, the 20-storey hotel – which comprised an airport terminal – was the tallest building in the city upon completion and was conceived entirely by Jacobsen who, employed as an external designer by local furniture outfit Fritz Hansen, also launched many of his iconic furniture pieces at that time.

In the 1970s though, a sad lack of foresight saw the refurbishment of many of the hotel’s guestrooms, bar Room 606, which was thankfully saved by the general manager at that time and is still available to book today. The room exhibits Jacobsen’s original design along with a selection of his iconic pieces, including the 'Swan', 'Drop' and 'Egg' chairs.

54 years later, Fritz Hansen has tactically re-surfaced at the hotel, this time employing the skills of Spanish artist and designer, Jaime Hayon, who embraced the task of re-designing another of the guestrooms - number 506. ‘To make this room has been a little bit of a celebration,’ says Hayon. ‘The origin from the beginning was to brainstorm together and enjoy.’

A range of existing Hayon designs for Fritz Hansen including the ‘Favn’ sofa, ‘Analog’ table and ‘Ro’ easy chair are complemented by a number of accessories such as a statement low-hanging ball light, lamps, cabinet, mirror and vase. ‘They’re small things, but it’s those details that make the place pleasurable,’ explains Hayon.

Also in the room is Jacobsen’s 'Drop' chair - designed in conjunction with the others as a series for the original hotel - which has now been re-launched after 50 years in hibernation. Hayon interpreted the chair in his own eccentric manner by upholstering it in fur: ‘I went with the most risky textile they had. "I said, 'let’s get hairy', you know, 'let’s get the animal on!"' he jokes.

Typically, Hayon has arranged the room in muted, putty grey tones with the odd pop of colour creating an interesting combination. ‘It was really about the idea that these colours are not easily combined,’ he explains. ‘I always say that in design, if you keep things sort of monochrome, and you have a few pieces with colour, you live quite peacefully.’

The result is clean and modern, with an undertone of spice that hints at Hayon’s Mediterranean charm. ‘It’s a great idea and it has been fun to do it,’ he says.

ADDRESS

Raddison Blu Royal Hotel
Hammerichsgade 1
Copenhagen V, DK-1611

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We photographed 10 of our major design players at the birthplace of Dom Pérignon, the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Pierre d'Hautvillers in France. From left: Studio Job's Nynke Tynagel, Piero Lissoni, Jaime Hayon, M/M (Paris)'s Mathias Augustyniak, Studio Job's Job Smeets, Ron Arad, Ludovica + Roberto Palomba, Michael Anastassiades and Patrick Seguin. 

In our October issue - out now - we unveil the Wallpaper* 100: our list of the design world's most powerful players. A calculus of authority and influence, rank and standing, cash and credibility, it's our measure of the hard currency and soft power of the 2014 global design elite.

Produced in association with Dom Pérignon, our power list is the result of many hours of heated debate here at Wallpaper*, the loose application of a complex mathematical model, and consultation with an international panel of curators. We have calculated a number of factors - quality and consistency of output, of course, but also influence and, as much as possible, a market value and earning power. We have also limited ourselves to designers and interior architects, with the occasional educator and commercial patron thrown in.

In the image gallery above, we give you a glimpse of some of the design big guns who made it onto our list, including the likes of Ron Arad, Piero Lissoni and Peter Marino.

We understand that some of you may feel squeamish about such a league table and even more will contest its results. But come on, who doesn't love a list? Ultimately, we hope it inspires thought and debate.

Want to have your say? We'd like to hear who you feel are the design world's most important people.

Tweet us your thoughts, using the hashtag #wallpaper100

For our US shoot, featuring eight wonders of the Wallpaper* 100, Michael Maharam kindly lent us his office in New York. From left: Peter Marino, Tyler Hays, Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch of Roman and Williams, Philippe Nigro, David Rockwell, Michael Maharam, Jerry Helling. To see the full Wallpaper* 100 and find out who came out top of the table, pick up our October issue.

When an artist suddenly switches hats and digs enthusiastically into a new, unchartered métier, the results can be oddly uneven or dizzyingly satisfying.  Happily, the latter is the case of a group of architects, artists and furniture designers who have recently broken out - with jazz hands, no less - onto the unfamiliar stage of jewellery design. 

Coaxed out of their usual creative boxes by the Galerie Kreo, Paris' leading design gallery, contemporary furniture and industrial designers like Marc Newson, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, Jaime Hayon, Hella Jongerius and Naoto Fukasawa, have all made jewellery, produced in limited editions, for the first time.

Jewellery designer Dominique Modiano and furniture designer Martin Szekely, who has collaborated in the past with Hermès, were the only two artists who had previously confronted the jewellery oeuvre.

The gallery also asked its artist friends, whose work they don't normally represent, to take part in the project: Constance Guisset, Tatiana Trouvé, Annette Messager, Fabrice Hyber, and Dominique Perrault all jumped on board. The brief to all 20 participants was, quite simply, to design a piece of jewellery to be worn around the neck. The rest was up to the artist. 

While many chose to work in gold - the industry standard - some leapt into the creative freedom with hemp rope wood, rough diamonds or polished onyx. Regardless of the materials, the results - like necklaces that swing from the ears by Constance Guisset, or tiny gold threads tumbled into a mass of knots by Lee Ufan - were all original.   

Currently part of a Galerie Kreo exhibition entitled 'Autour du Cou' or, 'Around the Neck', the pieces are offered in limited editions and will be on view until 19 January.