The result of a second year of collaboration with Daiko Industrial, the Awase light collection puts the emphasis on the flexibility of its materials and the effect of light passing through its curves.
The decision to make a light out of Sudare, a material traditionally used to make sun blinds, was a natural one.
Composed of a floor lamp, table lamp and wall bracket lamp, the Awase collection uses simple sheets of Sudare folded around an illuminated metal base.
Attached only behind the base, the Sudare remains mobile on the sides and front, allowing the user to control the opening of the lamp with the help of discrete magnets.
Closed, the Awase lamp diffuses light through the Sudare, creating soft striped shadows.
By opening the shade the light of the lamp may be modulated, increasing in intensity until it is fully open, when the traditional Japanese sun blind is presented almost as a painting, dappled with the light coming from the base.
The idea behind this mobile shade is that when the user manipulates the Sudare, he is called upon to pay attention to it,gently touch the material and take a moment to decide what kind of light he wants. This instant of attention and focus, even if it only lasts a few seconds, stimulates interest in and enriches appreciation of this creation.
Daiko Industrial is a manufacturer of traditional Japanese sun blinds located on the banks of Lake Biwa, one of the largest lakes in Japan. The reeds that grow in the fertile waters of Lake Biwa make it a choice area for Sudare production.
Acting as guardians of traditional expertise, Daiko has managed to modernize ancestral techniques and adapt them to the needs of contemporary lifestyles. Specialized in the production of blinds for both interior and exterior use, Daiko Industrial is now actively developing a furniture and lighting division using the basis of its traditional expertise: Sudare.
