The Dutch Design Contest has just ended. The competition has been promoted by Cristalplant®, in collaboration with the brand Tortu, to challenge architects and designers in the interpretation of the potentials of the solid surface material with the same name.
Elle, the project presented by Andrea Balzano and Gianluca Carraro, has won the competition by obtaining the maximum votes and the unanimity of the jury. Gijs Vrind, CEO of the Dutch company partner, defines it as characterized by an "essential design aiming at functionality: an aesthetic quality that fully reflects the style of Tortu".
"Elle was designed with the specific intention of creating a shape that best represent its function. We started from this idea, marking on a sheet the minimum shapes needed. A few lines to support the objects and contain water", Andrea Balzano claims. "The next step was to enclose it all in a synthetic form", Gianluca Carraro continues. "It is a minimalistic design that soft and sharp details make complex, but still very pleasing to the touch and the eyes", Carraro concludes.
Elle fully reflects the modus operandi of the two Milanese designers. Their style is very close to the lines that mark the aesthetic designs of the Dutch company: a highly modular shape consisting of a shelf and a bathtub that can stretch or tighten at will to get a small sink, a large double washbasin or a high and sculptural shape. It can be used in either the countertop version or the wall-mounted one.
