konstantin grcic: ray, peak and bling

‘peak’ in white

industrial designer konstantin grcic has created three décor laminates titled ‘ray’, ‘peak’ and ‘bling’ for abet laminati. the concept of using crystals on laminate has not been previously attempted.

‘the project brief was to link crystal with the furniture industry, so I thought it would be best to create a material, rather than a product. something that can be applied to furniture and interiors’. – KG

‘bling’ in black

‘ray’, ‘peak’ and ‘bling’ are simple and geometric decors. the pinstriped décor in ray, the repetition of the hexagonal shape in ‘peak’ and the small dots/stars of ‘bling’: every piece is a one-off because every crystal is placed differently into the laminate, thus creating light effects according to the position of the viewer.

the inclusion of the crystal inside the laminates by abet laminati has been possible thanks to a new technology developed by the company. the challenge was to include the crystals in the laminates without crushing them, especially during the pressing phase of laminate manufacturing. another big issue was to organize the small swarovski elements following the décor created by konstantin grcic, who shaped them in order to meet the requirements of the company.

‘ray’ in white

‘we have been able to create a totally new material. laminate is paper impregnated with resin and compressed with 90kg of pressure per square centimetre. we had to create a special compression system in order to integrate, and not crush, the crystal.’  –  alessandro peisino, abet laminati’s marketing director

‘ray’, ‘peak’ and ‘bling’ was created for ‘swarovski elements at work’ event which took place during milan design week 2010.