As mentioned earlier this week, I've just returned from a trip to Spain where I took part in the amazing Sunny Design Days tour. Organised by Spanish Design Association RED (Reuniòn Empresas De Diséno), the tour takes a small group of international bloggers to a series of exciting events, with the aim to present the best of Spanish design to the world through visits to showrooms and talks with renowned designers. We also visited architecture studios, workshops and factories, stayed in beautiful design hotels and were treated to delicious Spanish food at top restaurants. Travelling to Barcelona, Valencia and Madrid, it was an honour to be included and I had the most inspiring, fun and memorable time which I'm excited to share with you all.
As part of the blog series, I will be featuring each of the participating companies who we had the pleasure of visiting, and I'll also be shining a light on a few that really struck a chord with me. The first was a visit to the Marset Showroom in Barcelona. The award-winning lighting company began in the 1940s as a family business and produces refined and innovative lamps. Tucked away in a beautiful indoor/outdoor setting in the neighbourhood of Sant Gervasi, the industrial space designed by Stefano Colli is painted all-white, providing a simple and clean backdrop to showcase the brand's diverse lighting range. A display system inspired by the sawyers' process of stacking and drying planks, the versatile space has a natural look and feel that can be adapted over time to suit new collections.
Over cocktails we viewed the Reflections of Light videos which feature each of the designers talking about their products, not just from a technical point of view, but their personal feelings around light and what inspires them. Beautiful and insightful, I highly recommend taking a look here.
Following on from this we were treated to a delicious Spanish dinner (including our first Paella of the trip!) and wine in the gorgeous outdoor courtyard outdoor area surrounded by Marset lighting and lush greenery. Such a fun night, I loved meeting the Marset team and having the opportunity to talk to the talented designers in person.
Following on from this we were treated to a delicious Spanish dinner (including our first Paella of the trip!) and wine in the gorgeous outdoor courtyard outdoor area surrounded by Marset lighting and lush greenery. Such a fun night, I loved meeting the Marset team and having the opportunity to talk to the talented designers in person.
While I have been admiring Marset lamps for some time (you may remember this recent post featuring the Theia collection) talking with the designers has provided a much deeper understanding and appreciation of the brand. I think these words sum it up beautifully.
Marset is about more than lamps: we take care of light, in its different nuances and effects, to create atmospheres with character and improve our clients’ quality of life. We dedicate all our efforts to creating first-class designs and helping ensure the flawless completion of each product. We seek to produce innovative, clever fixtures, kindling our audience’s senses while taking them on a journey.
Refined and contemporary, Marset aims to discover new functions and applications for their time-honoured fixtures through technical precision and creativity. This constant quest for new directions, combined with a curiosity and foresight into the shape of things to come, has driven the ethos and design behind their collection. The main characteristics of this collection are its authentic feel, meaningful simplicity and decorative yet restrained visual approach.
Here's a look at some of the new lighting collections for 2017.
Here's a look at some of the new lighting collections for 2017.
Bicoca'The Independent Light' by Christophe Mathieu is born with with the optimism of brightening life and accompanying the good times, wherever you go. Available in a wide range of colours to suit any taste and space, this versatile, lightweight portable lamp projects an intimate light that adds warmth to all your personal spaces. These accompanied us in the outdoor courtyard and were a real talking point!
Following on from the success of the award-winning portable FollowMe lamp by Inma Bermúdez, Marset is launching a new version with a with a larger size and greater light output: the FollowMe Plus. Designed to complement its classic predecessor, the Plus reproduces the same warmth and quality of light with greater power. While the original size is perfect for cosy areas, the new version stands out for its ability to create entire atmospheres, and is great as a table lamp, desk lamp, or even on the floor. The FollowMe’s oak handle invites you to carry it with you. Both sizes utilise LED technology and have a tilting polycarbonate screen that offers both cosy atmospheric light and direct reading light, while a three- position dimmer regulates the light intensity. We were very lucky to be given the original FollowMe lamp to take home and I am so in love. Look out for a photo on my Instagram soon!
With just a touch of the fingertips, you can achieve a feeling of weightlessness with the Copérnica. 'The Weightless Light' by Ramírez i Carrillo establishes an intimate relationship with space, combining functionality with the beauty of pure lines. As if levitating, the lamp moves through space effortlessly, without friction or resistance. The collection, which draws minimalist sculptures in space with carefully selected colours, consists of desktop and standing versions that play with counterweights of mixed materials and density, such as steel and aluminium. This design allows one to move the lamp with great precision, providing a wide range of heights, distances, and adjustments to the beam of light. The upright version, a true statement piece, stands almost two meters in height and directly or indirectly illuminates the environment with its tilting head system.
Pu-erh'The Delicate Light' is distinctive in its use of ceramics and delicate, fabric like effect. Designer and ceramist Xavier Mañosa has created a texture that mimics pleated silk, which is then applied to a conical shade, casting a wide and beautiful ray of illumination. Created by way of a simple and truly artisanal process that begins with a rough sketch applied directly to the ceramic mold, the lamp features irregular variations and a raw, natural effect. Available in three sizes and a wide range of muted colours that highlights the texture of the ceramic, Pu-erh’s light is warm, pleasant, and playful.
Piola'Wrapping the Light' by Christophe Mathieu is a playful collection about imitating this fluidity of infinite movement, in search of a balance between the diffusion of light and the creation of shadows. The fixture’s spiralling form breaks with the monotony of cleanly ordered lines, offering a different face from every angle. At the same time, the central column provides a symmetry and solidity that supports and reinforces the visual movement of the screen. While the light comes in four colours, the structure and screen is in the same colour to lend the fixture cohesion and unity. In this way, by contrast, the quality of the light takes centre stage.
Djembé 'The Echo of Light' by Joan Gaspar is designed for repetition, creating musical compositions of light on the ceiling. A bell-shaped ceiling fixture with an exposed interior, Djembé is available in a numerous sizes and bright, airy colours that can be used individually or combined to create a brilliant statement piece. Truly unique, I was certainly drawn to its dramatic presence inside the Marset Showroom.
Jaima 'Wearing the Light' by Joan Gaspar has been designed via the language of textiles. Constructed of flexible, ductile materials that sifts the light as readily as it moves with the wind, the beautiful light is the shade and weaver of emotions. Taking its name from the Bedouin tents of North Africa, this collection is inspired by their varied fabrics and forms. The shade is available in two sizes and four different colours, with a blank interior to optimise the quality of the downward light. They can also be combined with one of three versatile stands to make various sizes of adjustable, rotating floor lamps. Alternatively, the fixture can also be affixed directly to the floor or wall, and the shades can be hung independently as pendants. A standout feature of the Marset outdoor courtyard, I couldn't help but admire its beautiful silhouette and textural quality.
Images 1, 8-23 courtesy of Marset / 2-7 photography by Michelle Halford for TDC
To find out more about Marset, the full range of products and stockists, take a look here.
The Sunny Design Days tour was arranged by RED - Reunión de Empresas de Diseño / Spanish Design Association - a nonprofit organisation that promotes Spanish design worldwide.