Quartz manufacturer Caesarstone unveiled its first installment of a yearlong collaboration with world renowned designer Jaime Hayon at the Interior Design Show in Toronto. The collaboration was launched as part of their 2017 Designer Collaboration Programme, which has, since 2013, pushed the boundaries of experiential design with work from nendo, Raw Edges, Philippe Malouin and Tom Dixon.
This year, Hayon created a whimsical Caesarstone universe titled Stone Age Folk. The installation featured seven new furniture pieces, in which, through Hayon’s craftsmanship and use of traditional high-end stone marquetry, Caesarstone’s signature quartz was crafted in an exciting new way. The installation welcomed visitors in an open, white gallery space where the pieces displayed included “face cabinets”, large scale “bird-like dining tables” and smaller scale coffee tables featuring animated characters alongside a mirror mask. Each handcrafted and uniquely designed piece transformed the material, typically used for kitchen and bathroom surfaces, into a highly decorative and precious material used as a fantastical component in creating Hayon’s world.
The installation heavily reflected the overall inspiration of the year-long collaboration, which took elements from fauna, the natural world, and folklore from different cultures, ranging from Hungarian myths to various African influences. These references, along with Hayon’s signature playfulness, curiosity and unique creativity made for a fresh and visionary take on Caesarstone quartz.
“This year’s designer collaboration with Jaime Hayon resulted in exquisitely crafted pieces giving way for the future of design. His all-immersive plunge into experimenting with Caesarstone materials further exposed the boundless possibilities of using our premium surfaces and the way these can inspire unexpected creations in the world of design,” said Elizabeth Margles, VP of Marketing at Caesarstone.
“In working with Caesarstone, I became curious about what’s doable through material and technology. Caesarstone material inspires designers and creatives to think of new ideas and bring novelty and innovation through creativity. This is what the installation for Caesarstone was about- this sort of combination of ideas, from folklore to fauna to colour to material to stone to furniture, ideas which resulted in unique pieces that can be functional or completely surreal and non-functional. Its about mixing the ingredients with our own intuition to create a new world, inspired by the possibilities of the material,” concluded Jaime Hayon.