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
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