Flos recently presented one of its most ambitious and avant-garde products: the Soft Architecture collection.
Created using an innovative composite material (Under-Cover technology) which unites light weight and high strength, these unusual lighting systems created by globally recognized designers, deliver performance, durability and perfect integration with normal plasterboard false ceilings or walls.
The collection consists of many different shapes, unusual inset designs for walls and ceilings and very different wall mounted lighting. The illumination is more of a glow with these designs, rather than a bright spot or beam of light. Lamps disappear into wall elements made of plasterboard, so that all that remains is architecture and light, in any number of different shapes and variants.
All the units in the collection boast eco-friendly materials and ultra-modern LED technology. The collection also complies with the latest international safety and eco-compatibility regulations, as it is made with a non-inflammable material and has "Cradle to Cradle" certification: a design protocol that ensures that companies regard 'sustainability' as a value, not a sacrifice, and offer products which can be recycled eternally.
The FLOS Soft Architecture line consists of designs and collections by Marcel Wanders, Ron Gilad, Antonio Citterio, Calvi Brambilla, Konstantin Grcic, Frank Wellens & Lynsey Leysen, Philippe Starck and Sebastian Wrong.
Here are a few highlights from the FLOS Soft Architecture line.
Ron Gilad's "Architectural Lucinario" is a modern take on stained and classic glass windows, only now they are inset in plaster and can be hung from the ceiling:
Wellens and Leysons "Pluto":
and their "Abajourd'hui 1" and "Abajourd'hui 2":
Sebastian Wrong's "Spun Lights", a 'classic' luminaire with a base and lampshade in small or large, but made of plaster that grows out of the backing panel, giving the appearance of a floating lamp partially embedded into the wall:
Ron Gilad's "Wall Piercings" are made in mobile plaster and added to panels which are then integrated into suspended ceilings or false walls. Countless designs and patterns are possible with these circular rings of light that appear to penetrate the wall:
Soft Architecture is designed to last and to minimize the harmful effects on the natural environment during production. Sustainability, innovation and quality are the main goals, inspired by nature.
Here are some images from their displays at the 2010 Salone del Mobile:
There's a lot more to see at the FLOS Soft Architecture dedicated site.
photos and information courtesy of flos and stylepark