Sprouting like coral or fungi, Sangmin Oh’s biologically-inspired lighting designs and furnishings merge type and performance. Primarily based between The Netherlands and South Korea, the designer (beforehand) is fascinated by the interaction of fabric, aesthetics, and sustainability.
Oh’s sculptural items revolve round the usage of textiles to create knitted or woven shades for lamps and different objects. In a brand new venture titled SOIL TO SOUL, he and a crew of studio assistants have assembled an set up utilizing Heracron model aramid yarn—a sort of light-weight and powerful polymer fiber that’s proof against the consequences of warmth, abrasion, and chemical substances.
Aramid yarn is usually utilized in bulletproof vests, heat-protective clothes, and as coverings for optical cables. Oh makes use of scraps of the fabric discarded by the producer, turning to 3D knitting expertise to reimagine colourful, textural items of cloth.
“The functional narrative of Heracron aligns with that of mushroom, which protects and sustains the earth,” Oh says of the works in SOIL TO SOUL. “Its hair-like strands mirror the skein of mycelial threads. Inspired by this similarity, the shape and pattern of the knitted fabric were designed to reflect these qualities.”
Oh’s work is at present on view in Seoul at RE;CODE, a model targeted on upcycling, the place items like a sprawling, fungi-inspired flooring lamp comprise the illuminated window set up. See extra on his web site and Instagram.
