Zumi and SFA42 Architects win Surface Design Awards lighting categories


20th February 2018

(UK) – Zumi wins Light and Surface Interior award for Soundscapes and SFA42 Architects win Light and Surface Exterior award for Beach Hut Monument for Beachy Head Lady.

The Light and Surface Interior Award winner Zumi for Soundscapes in Axel Vervoordt’s Kanaal complex in Antwerp was recognised for “the integration of light texture and acoustic performance in one product and the proportion and materiality was successful”, as said by judge Jenny Jones. The project combined energy-efficient LED lighting with a high-quality acoustic panel and the option to integrate speakers.

“In close collaboration with Alex Gaspar, the owner of Autodialog, we were able to achieve a unique and innovative lighting concept,” says Stephan Mees of Zumi. ‘For a large meeting room with a lot of hard materials and a steel ceiling, initial speculations involved a false ceiling. However, we designed an acoustic panel which also encompasses lighting. In this way, the space remained as close as possible to its original appearance.

“Our Soundscapes are a modular system of vertically and horizontally suspended panels and integrated light profiles. These panels are not only effective when it comes to acoustic absorption, they also represent a masterpiece of lighting technology.”

Zumi uses PI-LED technology in its products, an innovation that makes it possible for light to be harmonised to the greatest extent possible with what users and visitors need.

Zumi’s Tony Decavele comments, “Our products are made with a considerable focus on human-centric light, so the way in which light has an effect on people. On the one hand, using PI-LED you can match the intensity of the light to the time of day, while on the other you can synchronise colour temperature with the kind of ambience a space requires. This can be, for instance, a dinner at candlelight or a trendy lounge.’

The Eastbourne Pavilion is the result of a design build competition in which the local council asked designers to create iconic beach huts by the Seafront Walk. The winner of the Light and Surface Exterior category was the Beach Hut Monument for Beachy Head Lady by SFA42 Architects. The monument is made of translucent Corian Panels with an engraving on the street side of the hut explaining the story behind the design. The result was described by Ab Rogers as “Joyful multifaceted illuminated hut, (with a strong dialogue).

The Surface Design Awards took place on the 8 February as part of Surface Design Show 2018. The Surface Design Show is the only event in the UK focusing solely on interior and exterior surface design, facilitating thousands of innovative and thrilling materials to connect with an audience of architects and designers.

Launched in 2013, Surface Design Awards has grown exponentially in both stature and quality. International growth has been staggering this year with project entries from 16 different countries. 51% of the projects were outside the UK. 13 from China, 7 from Portugal and further entries from Spain, Italy, India, Egypt, Canada, America, Belgium, Lithuania, Taiwan and Hungary. There were 39 entries from the UK, 69% of these being from London. The most popular categories entered were Commercial Interiors and Housing Interiors.

The judging panel of the eleven Award categories was co-chaired by Tina Norden, of Conran and Partners, and Ab Rogers of Ab Rogers Design. The judges included Jenny Jones of Studio Jenny Jones, Sacha Leong of Studioilse, Constantina Tsoutsikou of HBA London, Jo Littlefair of Goddard Littlefair, Howard Sullivan of YourStudio and Nir Gilad of Nous Design, all of whom are experts in their fields.

www.surfacedesignawards.com
www.zumi.be
www.sfa42.ie

 

Soundscapes by Zumi, winner of the Light and Surface Interior award.