Fresh from their Wallpaper* Design Award win with the elegant interior of the Bella yacht, Danish Studio Norm Architects have announced another collaboration. Working hand in hand with compatriots Bang & Olufsen, the Contrast Collection takes eight of the acclaimed audio specialists’ most iconic products and transforms them with material, texture and tone. Kresten Bjørn Krab-Bjerre, Design Director at Bang & Olufsen, has committed to furthering the company’s collaborations, which include the Circle of Fifths project developed for Wallpaper* Handmade 2019 with Germans Ermičs. Describing the involvement of Norm Architects as a way of interpreting current interior trends, Krab-Bjerre emphasises the contrasting colours and materials.
The collection ranges from the Beoplay A1 Bluetooth speaker and Beoplay H9 wireless headphones, through to the larger, more architectural elements like the Beosound Shape and the Beosound 1 and 2. The colour palette focuses on light grey and anthracite, off-setting the brushed and polished aluminium that has become such a cornerstone of the B&O look. Norm Architects worked on bringing a warmth to the aesthetic through texture and fabrics, experimenting with different surface treatments, some of which used hand-brushed techniques, at Bang & Olufsen’s factory.
The Collection also includes a new fabric, developed closely with Kvadrat. It builds upon the Danish textile manufacturer’s first work for B&O back in 2015 with a more tactile, textured finish that uses a combination of wool and viscose. Renowned for their steely elegance and audio perfection, the Contrast Collection gives these Bang & Olufsen components a more grounded, earthy ambience, without compromising their high-fidelity roots. §
