Immersive installation from iconic KOHLER brand showcases artistic collaborations, a new global collection of limited-edition merchandise, and an aerial sculpture by Arts/Industry alumnus – Janet Echelman
KOHLER, Wis., March 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — The Creator’s Journey Presented by Kohler during Milan Design Week, the iconic brand partners with four contemporary artists from four different countries to create a limited-edition global collection of 12 new Artist Editions bath products. The company will also highlight a stunning aerial sculpture by noted creator and Arts/Industry alumnus Janet Echelman, and a user-controlled design experience at Palazzo del Senato during Milan’s Fuorisalone.
As part of Kohler’s 150th anniversary celebration, the world leader in design partnered with four artists, each recognized for their innovative art practices. The talented creators were given carte blanche to translate their visual expressions into Kohler products: the Numi 2.0 Smart Toilet, Brazn Sink and Brazn Bathtub. Each product in the collection will be offered in a quantity of 150 units, in honor of Kohler’s anniversary year.
“Kohler is dedicated to creating a space for the cross-section of art and craft in our industry,” said Laura Kohler, Director of Sustainability and Diversity for Kohler Co. “This new Artist Editions collection celebrates women of exceptional talent and diverse origins”.
Kohler’s Artist Editions products span nearly four decades and bring beauty to everyday rituals, pushing the boundaries of decorative processes and material ensembles, helping consumers express their personal style in their spaces. Inspired by the marriage of visual art and manufacturing craftsmanship, Artist Editions sinks, tubs and toilets are adorned with beautiful textures, intricate patterns, abstract artwork and picturesque landscapes. The offer also showcases Kohler’s innovative use of special enamels and noble materials.
Artist Janet Echelman presents Noli Timere in the Palazzo del Senato
Suspended high above is a monumental aerial sculpture titled Noli Timere, by acclaimed American sculptor and artist Janet Echelman. Echelman participated in Kohler’s Arts/Industry residency program more than two decades ago. Echelman has also collaborated with Kohler on the creation of an Artist Editions sink titled 18.02 that pays homage to the dynamic nature of water (exhibited in the Kohler exhibition).
Visitors to the Kohler installation can also embark on their own “Maker” journey within an immersive digital experience that allows them to bring art to life through their movements in space. As colors, patterns and shapes surround visitors in the Creator Room, they can become artists themselves, manipulating the creative overlay in the Kohler Numi Smart Toilet.
Media are invited to an exclusive preview reception on Monday, April 17 with the artists, who will be present and available for interviews.
For more information and images, visit Kohler Milan Design Week Press Kit.
About Kohler Co. Founded in 1873, Kohler Co. is a world leader in the design, innovation and manufacturing of kitchen and bath products; luxury cabinetry, tiles and lighting; motors, generators and clean energy solutions; and owner/operator of two five-star golf and hospitality destinations in Kohler, Wisconsin and St. Andrews, Scotland. Kohler’s Whistling Straits Golf Course hosted the 43rd Ryder Cup in 2021. The company also develops solutions to address pressing issues, such as clean water and sanitation, for underserved communities around the world to improve the quality of lives of current and future generations.
For more information, visit kohlercompany.com.
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About the artists
Janet EchelmanJanet Echelman sculpts to the scale of buildings and blocks. Echelman’s work defies any categorization, as she combines sculpture, architecture, urban design, materials science, structural and aeronautical engineering, and computer science. Using unlikely materials, from atomized water particles to engineered fibers fifteen times stronger than steel, Echelman combines ancient craftsmanship with design software to create works of art that have become focal points of urban life in the five continents, from Singapore, Sydney, Shanghai and Santiago to Beijing, Boston, New York and London. She graduated from Harvard College, before completing independent graduate programs in Painting and Psychology. An honorary doctorate from Tufts University, Echelman has taught at MIT, and Harvard and Princeton Universities. Her TED talk “Taking Imagination Seriously” has been translated into 35 languages ??with more than two million views. For more information, visit echelman.com/.
Elle is considered one of the best street artists in the world. After her beginnings as a graffiti artist, her work has been exhibited at the prestigious Saatchi Gallery in London, at the Urban Nation Museum in Berlin, and in a 60-meter-high projection on the façade of the New Museum in New York. Her work has been published in dozens of street art books and in global publications such as ELLE France and Vogue Australia. Elle has collaborated and painted for several international brands such as Reebok, Nike, Under Armour, Ralph Lauren, Samsung and Toyota, among others. In 2020, IntoAction commissioned Elle to create a four-story box tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsberg on New York’s Lower East Side. She will soon carry out a commissioned project in Amsterdam, at the STRAAT Museum. For more information, visit ellestreetart.com/.
Pushpa Kumari envisions a world energized by culture, heritage, observation and intuitive sensitivity using only pen and ink on paper. Throughout her life and her career, Kumari has challenged India’s traditional cultural norms and has chosen to focus on her craft. As a result, Pushpa has been able to develop a body of work that stands apart, both in concept and expression, from that of her contemporaries. Kumari’s influences are purely Indian, drawing inspiration from religious and social tradition. Despite being rooted in Indian tradition, his work has universal appeal and has reached an international audience. In 2016, his work was included in the prestigious 8th Asia-Pacific Triennale of Contemporary Art at Queensland Art Gallery / Gallery of Modern Art. He has also participated in several museum exhibitions in the UK, including “Telling Tales”, a 2013 exhibition at the National Museums in Liverpool.
Ananda Nahú is a painter, muralist and visual artist. Her style is distinguished by visual multiculturalism, rereading artistic movements and bringing pictorial techniques from the past to the present. Nahú’s works present a strong cultural anthropological study of the human being, rescuing the history of art of the most diverse nationalities, and transforming old currents of thought for today’s artistic needs. Throughout her pictorial career, Nahú has actively participated in socio-artistic projects at the United Nations, the European Union and the New York City Hall, among others. Nahú was a guest artist in advertising campaigns for multinational brands such as Nike, Gucci and Bloomberg. In 2015, she was published by CNN Style and Phaidon as one of the most influential artists in Brazil. In 2016, Ella Nahú broke records in the United States by painting the largest mural in the state of Ohio, funded by the Cleveland Foundation. For more information, visit anahu.com/.
Wang Ziling explores how humans perceive the structure of their external environment by reshaping the spatial form of painting. Wang has invented a hardened acrylic paint that allows the material to hang within the stretcher without adhering to the canvas. The resulting “continuous painting” can be used to link floating images between two or three frames, requiring the viewer to fill in the missing information in the stretched images. Wang graduated with a BFA from Central Saint Martins College of Art.
Media Contact:
Vicki Hafensteinvicki.hafenstein@kohler.comKohler Public Relations
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