At Meet d3, one of the biggest crowd-pullers was a blown glass workshop set up by the haute bohemian glass label Lasvit. There I had pleasure of meeting one of my design heroes — Leon Jakimič, the founder of the label.
Why is he a design hero for me, you ask? For starters for a brand he launched only in 2007, Lasvit has quickly grown to be one of the most coveted labels for hand-blown, bohemian glass works. Second, and more importantly, Jakimič understands the “business of design” like few others do. That intuitive quality has bode well not only just for Lasvit but also the many craftsmen and long-lost techniques that have found a new lease of life.
“I have always been drawn to take glass to its limits and find new ways to interact with it,” he told me. “With Lasvit I wanted to bring awareness to the great Czech art of Bohemian craftsmanship by transcending all boundaries and preconceptions about the combination of glass with light.”
He made good on aligning with some of the biggest names in the design world — Nendo, Ross Lovegrove, Daniel Libeskind, Maarten Baas, Czech legends René Roubíček and Bořek Šípek, to name a few — to create one-off collections. “Through collaborating with some of the world’s most renowned architects and interior designers, and through our dynamic creations, we have raised the bar in terms of creativity and innovation in the field of glass and light design.” Lasvit wowed the Middle East with its kinetic glass sculpture light, Alice.
Pushing the boundaries of kinetic light and glass installations, in-house designer Petra Krausova’s latest offering, the Supernova — to be unveiled at the upcoming Euroluce in Milan — magically transforms itself in both time and space, responding to the viewer’s movement by changing its form.
“Inspired by a stellar explosion, Krausova’s Supernova is very futuristic, it is much more choreographed than Alice and moves both horizontally and vertically. Its beauty comes alive with unexpected movement and refraction of light.”
On the other end of the spectrum of the Lasvit legacy is unbridled celebration of bohemian glass, updated to the times, thanks to strides in bettering traditional techniques that master craftsmen spend generations perfecting. The Candy Collection by the Campana Brothers explores and expresses a colourful Universe through glass, a material that has fascinated them since childhood.
“When we first visited the Lasvit glassworks near Novy Bor, we discovered a large number of possibilities to explore,” said Fernando Campana. “They have a wide range of techniques that drew our attention and inspired us to create a collection that celebrates traditional techniques refined through modern know-how.”
And while his A-list roster of designers create the next big thing in glass, Jakimič is putting his energy behind a “glass museum” project in the heart of Prague. Housed in an 18th century historical building, he hopes to showcase the spirit of bohemian glass in all its glory.
“The scale of the project is enormous,” he explained. “We will have 10 installations in the museum including kinetic and dynamic pieces. Each piece will be a collaboration with a great artist.”
Zaha Hadid amongst others is a confirmed participant. Set to open in 2017, Jakimič is optimistic of numerous collaborations and installations in the two years ahead — all to be housed in the “Glass Experience by Lasvit” section of the museum.
“We will also have a furnace inside the building with performances for visitors and opportunity for tourists to experience glass blowing techniques.” A global flagship showroom will round up the Lasvit experience.
Pratyush Sarup edits the design site designcarrot.net. You can follow the site on twitter @DesignCarrot.
