Kohler Co., the award-winning British artist and designer Dr Samuel Ross, and his industrial design studio SR_A recently unveiled a breakthrough limited-edition Kohler x SR_A Formation 01 faucet at Design Miami/ 2023.
The product’s striking angles and industrial bold Haptic Orange colour defy the traditional design and performance of a bathroom faucet. The Kohler x SR_A collaboration embraces Samuel’s avant-garde artistic approach while also honouring Kohler’s 150-year legacy of innovation and craftsmanship in the development of a new design language for water solutions. This new limited-edition faucet challenges how we engage daily with the form and function of an everyday object by pushing the boundaries of materials, forms, and colours.
Photo credit: Kohler Co.
“Throughout our history, we have operated on the leading edge of innovation, creativity, and bold leadership – attributes that align with the approach of Samuel and SR_A. The Kohler x SR_A Formation 01 faucet is the first tangible execution in our partnership and an experience unlike anything we have seen in the industry,” says David Kohler, Chair and CEO, while also adding: “The breakthrough ideas shared in our collaboration help drive our industry leadership forward and challenge us to expand our perspectives of product and process.”
Materials
Cast as one singular, sculptural object, as opposed to a traditional finish plating process, Formation 01 sets new expectations for the ritual of water. The faucet is crafted from Neolast, a new material exclusive to Kohler which allows for the dramatic expression of form, a new language of shape, and the saturation of colour. Mounted on an escutcheon plate crafted from Kohler’s signature cast iron, Formation 01 perfectly balances the future-forward design with the timeless industrialism of molten iron.
Forms
Kohler’s advanced engineering of a custom water channel allows for water delivery through the faucet’s sharp angles. The fluid dynamics required by the shape and expressive angles of the faucet demand precise pressure control to enable the reinterpretation and design of how the water flow is intended to be experienced. The rocker-style handle completes the ultra-modern aesthetic of the piece.
Colours
The industrial Haptic Orange hue evokes the 1967 debut of “Tiger Lily” in Kohler’s bathroom line and blends Ross’s signature colour with Kohler’s legacy of colour leadership.
Photo credit: Kohler Co.
Manufactured in line with SR_A’s progressive study of design and practical experience, the faucet’s high visibility and arresting form draw attention when installed in any space. Abstract in its nature, Formation 01 is open for interpretation to be partly determined by the user.
“We engage with faucets daily, developing a perspective on this act is a generational contribution to a form and function study, related to developing new expectations for water solutions for future generations,” says Dr Ross. “The faucet created in collaboration with Kohler brings together the signatures of our industrial design studio SR_A: an intentionally abstract, reductive use of form and colour, at times minimal and arresting in the application. The object’s high visibility links back to the collective view we have within the design studio’s philosophy, and experimentation, tied to hyper-visual communication – we focus on future design perspectives and solutions that invite questioning and critique. This often involves deconstructing familiar objects and forms.”
The Formation 01 will debut at Kohler’s booth at Design Miami (Dec. 6-10, 2023) and will be available to purchase on the website. Ahead of the debut, visitors to the Kohler x SR_A website can experience the faucet through an augmented reality filter that allows users to place the faucet in their home space, or anywhere inspiration strikes.
Kohler and SR_A plan to reveal more details of their multi-year partnership throughout 2023 and 2024, igniting inspiration through physical unveilings and brand experiences.
Photo credit: Kohler Co.
Source: Cision & Kohler Co.
