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Laufen Celebrates 125 Years

Jun 11, 2017

Over a century’s worth of handcraft and cutting-edge innovation informs an exhibition of 17 sculptures by leading designers, on show at Design Miami/ Basel.

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An exhibition of sculptures made using Laufen technologies celebrates the premium bathroom brand’s 125th anniversary. Having already drawn praise during Milan Design Week, the exhibition will return to Laufen’s home territory at Design Miami/ Basel from June 12 to 18.

Established in 1892 in Switzerland, just outside Basel itself, Laufen has for over a century brought together enduring handcraft and cutting-edge technology. The legacy of expert hands with great skill and delicate sensitivity has been passed down through generations, and this timeworn knowledge continues to bridge the past and the future. Immanuel Kant wrote, “The hand is the window on to the mind,” and it is with this reverance for tradition and rigor that Laufen have embraced innovation in pursuit of even more quality and aesthetic value.

From this brand essence, designer satelier oï, Stefano Giovannoni, Konstantin Grcic, Alfredo Häberli, Benjamin Dillenburger and Michael Hansmeyer, Toan Nguyen, Ludovica and Roberto Palomba, Patricia Urquiola, Nissen Wentzlaff and Peter Wirz have made 17 sculptures that encapsulate Laufen’s reference points, beliefs, aspirations, values and milestones, translated from abstract to figurative, from handmade to digital fabrication in vitreous china, SaphirKeramik, coated sand, LCC, varia resin and plaster.

Laufen Milestones installation view at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
Laufen Milestones installation view at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
Robots by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 67 × 35 × 25 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Robots by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 67 × 35 × 25 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Complete Bathroom Solutions by Konstantin Grcic Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 145 × 80 × 57 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Complete Bathroom Solutions by Konstantin Grcic Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 145 × 80 × 57 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Water by Toan Nguyen SaphirKeramik, plaster mould produced from a shaped model, cast by hand, glazed and sintered, 50 × 35 × 35 cm
Water by Toan Nguyen SaphirKeramik, plaster mould produced from a shaped model, cast by hand, glazed and sintered, 50 × 35 × 35 cm
Material Innovation by Atelier oi, thick high-performance ceramic (aluminium oxide Al2O3), light -stereolithography (liquid material 3D printing process), 25 × 10 × 10 cm Producer: Lithoz GmbH
Material Innovation by Atelier oi, thick high-performance ceramic (aluminium oxide Al2O3), light -stereolithography (liquid material 3D printing process), 25 × 10 × 10 cm Producer: Lithoz GmbH
Collaborations with Designers by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 2 × 25 × 10 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Collaborations with Designers by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 2 × 25 × 10 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Classics by Stefano Giovannoni, wall-hung WC, IlBagnoAlessi One, 2002 Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 25 × 19 × 17cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Classics by Stefano Giovannoni, wall-hung WC, IlBagnoAlessi One, 2002 Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 25 × 19 × 17cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Culture by Prof. Benjamin Dillenburger, Michael Hansmeyer - ETH Zurich Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 68 × 62 × 45 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Culture by Prof. Benjamin Dillenburger, Michael Hansmeyer - ETH Zurich Polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted 68 × 62 × 45 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Laufen Milestones installation view at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
Laufen Milestones installation view at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
Ingenuity, pressure casting mould, Laufen Varia Resin, milled section of casting form, cut, lackered, 75 × 45 × 16cm
Ingenuity, pressure casting mould, Laufen Varia Resin, milled section of casting form, cut, lackered, 75 × 45 × 16cm
Open Mindedness by Alfredo Haberli Grinding ball, coated, glazed and sintered SaphirKeramik, 8 × 6 × 50 cm
Open Mindedness by Alfredo Haberli Grinding ball, coated, glazed and sintered SaphirKeramik, 8 × 6 × 50 cm
The World by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba Fine  reclay, cast by hand using a shaped mould, glazed and sintered, 78 × 55 × 35 cm
The World by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba Fine reclay, cast by hand using a shaped mould, glazed and sintered, 78 × 55 × 35 cm
Swissness by Peter Wirz Fine  reclay, cast by hand using a shaped mould, glazed and sintered, 20 × 84 × 23 cm
Swissness by Peter Wirz Fine reclay, cast by hand using a shaped mould, glazed and sintered, 20 × 84 × 23 cm
Handmade by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard Clay, modelled by hand, air-dried, 14 × 30 × 20 cm
Handmade by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard Clay, modelled by hand, air-dried, 14 × 30 × 20 cm
Clients by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 30 × 12 × 14 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Clients by Bastien Aubry, Dimitri Broquard modeled by hand, scanned, polymers and silica sand, binder jetting (powder bed 3D printing), infiltrated and painted, 30 × 12 × 14 cm, Producer: Christenguss AG
Cleansing by Studio Achermann Natural sponge in dipped and sintered SaphirKeramik, 15 × 22 × 27 cm
Cleansing by Studio Achermann Natural sponge in dipped and sintered SaphirKeramik, 15 × 22 × 27 cm
Laufen Milestones installation view with Peter Wirz, Konstantin Grcic, Aurel Aebi and Roberto Palomba at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
Laufen Milestones installation view with Peter Wirz, Konstantin Grcic, Aurel Aebi and Roberto Palomba at Design Miami/ Basel 2017
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